


Brave Fighter, Matchmaker

by NangerDama



Category: Phandom/The Fantastic Foursome (YouTube RPF)
Genre: AU, Abusive Relationships, Angst, DAN AND PHIL - Freeform, Doctors & Physicians, F/M, Fanfiction, Fights, Friendship, Gangs, Healthy Relationships, Homophobia, Hurt/Comfort, Implied/Referenced Drug Use, Internalized Homophobia, M/M, Mental Health Issues, Mind Games, Mystery, Non-Consensual Drug Use, Non-Graphic Violence, Phan AU, Phan Angst, Phan Fluff, Phanfiction, Poetry, Psychological Trauma, Romance, man the tags are weird on this, tae kwon do au
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-11-08
Updated: 2016-11-10
Packaged: 2018-08-29 23:40:44
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 12
Words: 51,554
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8510212
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NangerDama/pseuds/NangerDama
Summary: Dan Howell is preparing for his big Tae Kwon Do match, but he gets injured just before it's time to win- and it's no accident. Dan finds his life is being hurdled in another direction as everything he knows to be true in his life comes cascading down.





	1. A Bad Start

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This work is currently in progress- chapter eleven should be up soon, and I'm currently revising chapter 12.

Chapter One: A bad start (Friday, April 13)

 

The quiet morning breeze wafted through the window. Stretched out unevenly, with one leg wrapped in covers and the other bare and pimpled, a teenager lay partially awake, face smashed in a huge pillow. His alarm snapped into action, blaring and making him start. He reached out and switched it off, and then buried his face in the pillow again. He heard birds calling loudly outside of his window, and a heavy shuffling of feet downstairs. Annoyed at his inability to fall back asleep, he snapped up and swung his legs over the side of the bed.

 

Then, with a feeling of dread that halted his annoyance, he realized something. It was Friday. The day Dan had been worrying over for the last two months as he trained was finally here. He shook his head to make his lair fall into place, petting it down and running his fingers through it. He grabbed his cell phone to check his recent texts. 

 

Ryan:

 

Now: Get out of bed man! You're gonna miss pre-practice warm ups. 

 

2h: Hey, you should swing by

 

13hr: Come by my place tomorrow. I have your stats 

 

16hr: you're up against johnson for the prac.

 

16hr: Yeah haha. I don't know what's up with Sheila. She acts jealous or something.  
NE way, the match is tomorrow.

 

Maya:

 

16hr: Dude, it's not like she even cares about you. If you ask her out, she's gonna do something weird. Just leave her alone.

 

Tom:

 

17hr: Get the form

 

18hr: hurry up

 

He groaned. He had been practicing all day yesterday, and his phone had died five minutes into his morning classes. He hadn't been able to get it to hold any charge. It was fourth generation iPhone. By the time he got home at five, he was exhausted. He scrolled through his missed texts, stopping to read the one from Maya. He sighed in frustration. Why wouldn't Sheila talk to him? She acted like she was so much better than him, but she wouldn't spar him and she wouldn't pay attention to anything he said to her. He was so tired of trying to help her. He didn't have time for that. 

 

He grabbed his dobok, which was hanging half-folded over the foot of his bed, and dug his sneakers out of the closet. He checked the time. Damn it. Running with his belt in his left hand and his phone in his right, he ran down four flights of stairs and grabbed his bike, hastily putting the combination into the lock and tossing it to the side. He finished tying his belt and set the phone in the wire drink holder, speeding off to practice.

 

"You're late," barked Master Tom roughly. Ryan was already there. He caught Dan's eye, slightly shaking his head as if to say, "I tried to tell you." Sure enough, Master Tom rounded on Dan. 

 

"Drop and give me fifty." As for the rest of you- get on those forms! Ryan! Pay attention to yourself. Don't give Misty a chance to hit you. Respond to her techniques!" 

 

Irritated and fatigued, Dan dropped to the floor, thinking of the forms he had created for the practice. Spearhand Strike, low perry block, outside arm block, roundhouse kick. Turn. He felt the acid building in his muscle fibers. Infuriated, he thought of Sheila. Who was she to treat him like that? Forty three- he struggled, his concentration faltering. Harnessing the anger that he felt, he managed ten more pushups before collapsing on his chest. Master Tom scowled at him.

 

"Now run twenty three laps- three extra because apparently you cannot count."

 

Peeling himself off of the floor, he staggered to his feet and started off jogging around the gym. He watched his classmates practicing their own forms. Apparently, he had missed basics. He pursed his lips angrily, biting his bottom lip. Sheila stared through him, and each move she performed seemed to be filled with malice. Maya gave him a quick nod before returning to her forms. She was an exceptionally well-ordered individual, unlike himself. Sometimes he wondered why she ever hung out with him to begin with. She was one of the best, most constant individuals he knew. When he finished laps, he jumped into line next to Ryan. 

 

"Well, that went well," he said. "Always does when you turn up late. He's harder on you, you know. And because of you, he's harder on all of us." 

 

"I don't understand why he drills us like this," Dan returned. "Why can't we just rest before a match?" 

 

"The Match," Ryan corrected. Dan glared at him. "You know why. Do you really want to hear him explain it again? He's been grilling us all week." Dan pulled his belt tight. He glanced at Sheila, who executed each kick and punch with glacial coldness and bared her teeth as she knocked the wind out of her young partner. She looked up at him breathing heavily, blazing crystalline fire, and he looked away. 

 

"Fine then," he said through his teeth. "Let's go." 

 

"JOONBI!" Master Tom commanded. Mouth quivering at the corners, he turned away from Ryan and tried to put the day before yesterday behind him. "First time through, my count! No contact this run. Fighting stances." HANA! Dan swept back into a knifehand block. DOOL! He executed a clean front snap kick. SET! He struggled to clear his mind, performing a backfist strike which was slightly to the left. He swore under his breath.

 

" HIIIIATTTTZZ!" Dan exclaimed on the tenth count. 

 

Two hours of practice had gone by, and Dan's dobok was sticking to his skin. Sweat crawled down his back as he executed a roundhouse kick, which Adam apprehended with an inside arm block, then deftly closing the space between them and kicking perfectly centered, foot snapping right next to his jaw. Normally, he would compliment Adam on how he had progressed. He was genuinely impressed with his control, but he just cursed bitterly, moaning as he thought of Sheila, who had left practice early, which, to his surprise, Master Tom had permitted.

 

"One minute water break," the teacher declared roughly. "Go, go, go. Starling- get your mind out of Howell's business and pay attention to your forms. Howell- sidelines." 

 

Ryan looked surprised at first, and then lowered his head, bowing as he crossed the out-of-bounds line in the basketball court and giving Dan one last look. He tried to make out what Ryan was trying to tell him. He was pretty sure he knew, and if he knew, then he didn't care. Everyone else was freestyle sparring, practicing for the upcoming match. Maya and Kim were fighting spectacularly, with spinning back kicks and hook kicks, then forearm strikes. They almost looked like they were dancing, until Kim fell backwards, landing a smart blow in the stomach from Maya, who was poised in a cat stance. She walked over to pull him up again, giving him a pat and a nod, then returning to sparring position. Master Tom was approaching. A deep voice interrupted his thoughts. 

 

"Howell, where is your mind? You just kicked two inches off target and you missed both outside arm blocks." Dan started. Master Tom was glaring at him in disappointment. "I gave Adam explicit instructions not to full-contact spar with you, and you didn't notice." With a horrible feeling, Dan's mind returned to the present, knowing he had just failed a very simple test that his teacher had given him. 

 

"50 pushups, 50 sit ups?" He asked, sullen. Master Tom shook his head.

 

"You're not getting off that easily, I'm afraid, Dan." With a shock, he realized his teacher had used his real name. He was serious. This could only mean one thing. "Fighting stance," commanded Master Tom. His eyes widened as he realized what was happening. Dan assumed a back stance, and Master Tom gave the command. "Sijack!" 

 

Dan narrowly avoided a blow that would have felled an iron lamppost. He dodged his master's punches, and then a series of strikes that got progressively faster. Roundhouse kick, and then forearm strike. He slid to the side and aimed a punch at his jaw and a front kick in quick succession, which Master Tom blocked. He jumped and kicked towards Dan's face, and he moved so quickly that his knees buckled. Springing upwards with an outside arm block, he performed two crescent kicks in quick succession, midair. His master skirted both blows so rapidly he realized a second too late that he had maneuvered behind him. He turned saw a foot fly towards his face, and jumped in a panic. Dan dodged the kick with difficulty, getting as close as he could, sliding his left leg and met him with a palm heel strike to the side of the head, but it was brushed off and as soon as thought a leg like lightning flashed over his head, falling on his left shoulder, and he crumpled. He struggled to his feet, and his master flashed the side of his heel directly towards the center of his chest, targeting the sternum. He ducked backwards, stretching and jumping upwards, feet flying in a tight spin over his head as he landed on his feet, shuffling and bringing an axe kick down on Master Tom's head. It wasn't nearly full power. He blocked it with a rising block and followed it with a middle punch, which Dan could not fully block. Gasping, Dan remembered his fighting stance, but just before he had both hands in place, a side kick stopped short just half an inch in front of his face. Dan squinted expectantly, but realized after a moment he was still standing. Slightly trembling, he opened his eyes. His master set his foot down. 

 

"JOONBI." He commanded. Dan balled up his fists and stood up straight. "Cho." Master Tom stared at him for five seconds, and Dan was silent. Wordlessly, Tom strode away, all the way across the gym to his office, where he closed the door behind him with a heavy click.

 

Thoroughly exhausted, he took off his helmet and hung his head, not bothering to wipe the sweat, now trickling down his forehead, from his brow. He didn't know what to practice. Master Tom had said practice was over, but Dan felt that he had hardly learned anything. All he had gotten were a few bad bruises and a thoroughly undereducational lesson in how to get hit- a lot. He grimaced, shaking his head slowly. Ryan and Maya and all of the others had already left, leaving him alone in the gym. Suddenly, he heard his phone vibrating loudly on the bleachers. He walked over, and saw 11 unread messages, and two missed calls.

 

Sheila:

 

11m: Dan, we need to talk. NOW.

 

10m: If you ignore me any longer, I will hurt you.

 

9m: God, don't act like you don't know what's up, either.

 

4m: You already know what's up. DAMN YOU

 

4m: I'm going to call you

 

4m: No, you know what? I want to talk to you in person.

 

4m: Otherwise- No- just- 

 

2m: ..

 

2m: You know

 

2m: I never liked you.

 

1m: I really can't believe you'd do that.

 

How did she get his number? It occurred to him- the other day, he had tried to give it to her. He thought she had left it. He thought to himself that he should be annoyed, but he couldn't summon anger- only exhaustion. Dan heard footsteps right outside of the hall on the opposite side, and got an enormous shock when he saw Sheila approaching. She looked beyond angry. Her blonde-silver hair was tousled, and her entire face was wrought tightly together, muscles in her jaw bulging as she strode right up to him. She looked as if she had grown a few inches as she strode toward him aggressively. He wished he could get out, leave, just have some peace after a day that had already gone so badly. Instead, she flashed the back of her hand threateningly. He winced. Her voice went eerily calm. 

 

"Sit down, Dan," she commanded. He sat down, watching her sweep both hands behind her back, clasping them loosely. "So-" she said with a level of control that made his blood run cold- "How are you? I bet practice was rather long."She tilted her head, frowning in mock confusion. "I wonder what you were thinking during practice? Surely even you couldn't miss that many kicks in a row after so much training." 

 

"Listen-" Dan said tiredly- "I didn't hit on you because I liked you-" but Sheila interrupted. 

 

"Oh, is that so?" She said, gritting her teeth, her pretty eyes flashing as strangely and soullessly as they ever had. "Because that's what it seemed like when you told me that my boyfriend was no good for me and you liked my spirit, but I quote unquote needed a good mentor and coach." Then- she approached, overshadowing Dan and silencing his retort- "you had the nerve to imply that you would be the best one for that little job." 

 

"I didn't mean that-" 

 

"Oh yes, you did. I know you did. You are pathetic." 

 

Dan found his voice. "I- didn't mean that you weren't advanced enough for the match if that's what you're getting at. I was just trying to get you to listen to me for once. I need your help," he admitted, to his own and Sheila's surprise. "I meant to.. to show you that I admired you. I'm sorry I didn't talk to you. You're good- and I didn't acknowledge it at first because I thought you were stuck up. I was-" he cut off, looking into her eyes. "Jealous," he thought, but at most he whispered it. Something about his tone drew her full attention. She stared at him without meaning to, almost needily, as though his next words were what she most needed to hear. Instead, he said, "Your boyfriend is not- good for you. He's a jerk." Pausing, he remembered something. "I figured out how to do a roundhouse kick- I mean one that will knock out your opponent." For a moment, she looked disappointed. Then, she smiled.

 

"Well, I have, too-" and with three powerful blows in one liquid kick, Dan found himself hurtling ten feet backwards, a great pain smarting sharply in his right collarbone. He skidded to the floor, dizzy, palms sweating against the dirty lacquered gym floor. Sheila was leaving. "Goodbye, Dan," she said without turning around. 

 

As soon as Sheila had gone, he went straight back to the bleachers. He sat down, wheezing and clutching his sore side. He checked his phone, which said 4:30. he let his head hang. After a talk like that- 

 

he didn't have anything to say. The pain in his collarbone had gone numb, and he touched it gingerly, shooting pain through his shoulder. He gasped, grasping at the plastic edge of his seat. Closing his eyes, he felt a thin tear streak down the side of his face. He blinked to clear his vision, casting his eyes down. Grinning humorlessly, he bit the edge of his tongue and sighed, closing his eyes to dull the pain of looking around him, bringing reality to his unreal situation.

 

He sat in silence for twenty minutes, watching the light flicker across the gym and feeling numb. The sound of a door opening, white light streaming in, lifted his gaze to the door. He saw someone enter the gym. Who was that? His first thought was Sheila, but she had already left, and intuition told him that she wasn't coming back. Instead, he saw an angular figure wearing what looked like swim trunks enter the doors on the opposite side of the gym. They had a towel draped around their shoulders, but Dan couldn't make out who it was. They didn't look familiar. He saw the figure, nearly a black silhouette, walk in and flip their (wet?) hair aside, walking over to Master Tom's temporary office in Coach Jim's cubicle. He looked on somewhat curiously. He saw them enter after knocking on his door and shaking hands with Master Tom. He almost wanted to walk over, but then, with a heavy feeling, he recounted what had just happened. He dialed his mother, phone heavy in his hand, still gently holding his side, and got slowly to his feet.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This work was written in a free-form fashion over the course of several weeks. Although it has been well edited, it has not been extensively revised; the plot continues to evolve with the story. As we get deeper into the story, the chapters become longer. Don't worry; you can always save this to a tab and come back to it later.
> 
> I hope you are all having a great day.


	2. Will to Fight

When he got home, he trudged towards the stairs. "Dan!" His mother now sounded alarmed. "Are you alright?" He mumbled something but he kept climbing. "Dan! What do you mean? What happened?" He tried to brush her away, but she followed him into his room. He sat down heavily on his bed, and his mother sat next to him. "Dan." She leveled his gaze at him, calmly. He felt the lump in his throat rising when he saw his mother's onlooking genuine gaze of concern. As he swallowed, he felt his eyes welling up with tears. They slid down his cheekbones one after another, and he breathed inaudibly, diaphragm trembling violently, and bent over into his mother's shoulder, crying and losing sight of his dark room. Clutching his mother, he cried until his stomach felt empty, but remained as heavy as before. "Look at me." She placed a hand on his right shoulder. He let out an involuntary yelp of pain. Startled, she removed it. "You're hurt," she said. "Stay still." She placed two fingers on his collarbone, but before she could gingerly press the injury, he winced. "Alright," she declared, concern evident in her voice. "We'll take you to the hospital tonight. I'm calling the doctor to see if there is an appointment available." She went into the other room to get her phone, and he checked the time. It was 6:00. Master Tom had said the match begun at 7:00, but he knew they had to be there early for light warmups. Heart sinking, he knew what he would have to do to get there. He was ridden with guilt at the thought. His mother walked in to check on him, then went downstairs into the dining room to make the call. When he was sure she was occupied with the call, he grabbed his uniform and slipped on his shoes. He reached over and grabbed the cell phone sitting on his bed where his mother had been moments ago. Silently, he stepped down, foot by foot, toward the key hook in the living room. He reached for the keys, freezing as he heard his mother come closer. "Yes, this appointment would be for Daniel Howell. My son. -Yes, may I ask if there is something tonight, within the next couple of hours?" Guiltily, his fingers twitched. Remembering his task, he grabbed the keys, muting them with his palm, and slid across the Dining Room and opened and closed the door to the garage. He started the car, opening the garage door with the automatic button on the wall and drove off without closing it behind him. 

 

back at his house, his phone was still sitting on his bed, with four unread notifications.

 

Maya

 

10m: Dan I have to talk to you about something. It's important

 

8m: Dan please answer me

 

7m: Look, I know you like Sheila, but something isn't right with her at all

 

Now: Call me tonight after the match

 

He parked in the back lot, shaking as he got out of the car and headed for the gymnasium. He pushed the heavy doors open, and it was flooded with yellow light. Hastening to the Boy's locker room, he kept to himself and he found an empty row of lockers and removed his clothes, straightening the collar of his dobok before putting it on and tying his belt. Tremors visibly moved down his arms, and he gasped in pain as they reached his shouders. He reached into his pocket and scooped out a tiny blue bottle labeled "Advil (PM)" Without turning the label to read it, he popped the top off and  
swallowed a pill, readying a second when he heard the locker room door open. It was Kim, already fully dressed, texting as he walked. He turned and saw Dan, an expression of mild surprise at seeing him.

 

"Hey Dan, you're here. I didn't know you were. We've got about 15 until the first match." Dan looked the other way, turning his face from him, and managed a stiff laugh.

 

"Yea," he replied, "Exciting! Tell coach I'll be right out, okay?"

 

"Alright Dan," said Kim, half distracted by a stream of messages. "My Grandparents are here! I'll see you at the ring." "Good luck! He yelled over his shoulder." Dan nodded slowly as the door slammed shut. Shaking the bottle, he took another Advil. Had he already taken one? No, no he hadn't. His shoulder blade still ached deep within the bone. He shook yet another into the palm of his hand and downed it, then went straight for the water fountain right outside of the locker room.

 

Dan emerged from the locker room, Ryan following him. "Hey man." Dan looked at Ryan, unwilling to talk, but something about his friend's gaze set him at ease again. "I saw what happened with Master Tom." He put his hand on Dan's left shoulder. Dan smiled weakly, remembering that Ryan was left-handed. "I'm sorry. I knew he'd be hard on you for practice, but I didn't think he would have you spar with him." Ryan looked around. "All of us are rooting for you. You should know that. Even Sheila-" he faltered, checking to see that she was not in their immediate vicinity. "Even she wants for you to win, I know it. I saw her once, practicing in the gym late at night. She picked up the phone. I didn't hear much, but she said something about you. She was defending you- I don't know how or why, but she was. Then she hung up and threw her phone across the room. I think she had been talking with her boyfriend, with Charli." 

 

Dan's eyes widened slightly, and he looked Ryan straight in the eye. "Do you really think- did that really happen?" Ryan nodded confidently. Dan laughed. "She just about broke my collarbone." After he said it, he realized he probably shouldn't have. He didn't need another concerned person trying to keep him from tonight's match- it was too important. More important to him than a cracked collarbone. 

 

"Dan, are you alright?" 

 

"I'm fine," he said, giving a genuinely brave smile in place of the false reassurance he had given his mother. "I'm going to give my opponent- whoever they are- a run for their money if I can't beat them." 

 

Ryan smiled back at him. "Nah, ignore the stats. I have a feeling you're gonna be great." 

 

"Thanks Ryan," he returned, giving him one last thankful look, only to realize he had just left. Straightening his belt, he stepped into the light just outside of the sparring ring.

 

Master Tom greeted him. "Master, I-" but to his surprise, Master Tom interrupted him. 

 

"Dan, you are strong. You proved to me that you have what it takes to fight in the ring tonight, if you lack some common sense. Keep your head where it belongs- Don't worry about others. I promise to you that your friends are going to be alright." Astonished, Dan nodded. Master Tom still looked stern, but his countenance was not hard with disappointment, but with confidence- confidence in Dan. "Step up. Stand straight and tall!" He nodded as Dan complied. "Good luck Howell. Show everyone your fighting spirit!" Dan smiled a little at familiar words, and stepped onto the platform, the foam mat sinking slightly under his weight. 

 

The gym lights seemed unusually bright, but perhaps it was only the glare from the lamp, the only white light in the gymnasium, which hung above him. He blinked. His eyes still hurt a little, but he squinted at the referee and the scorekeeper opposite him, trying to orient himself. The opposing team was called the Riverbrook School of International Taekwondo. He looked down. He was on the red side of the mat. He looked into the bleachers, where rows of parents and a considerable amount of friends and supporters sat. He recognized Misty's mother and father there, and Kim's grandparents, along with Amanda and Rob, and a couple of other familiar faces. Ryan's older brother had come. He waved at Dan, and Dan waved back. Finally, he saw Maya, Ryan, Adam, and his other classmates sitting on the bleachers. Sheila was there, he realized. She standing on the sidelines behind the bleachers, talking to Master Tom. The shadow of worry crossed his thoughts, and he dreaded that Master Tom might punish her if he found out what she had done, but he remembered his fairness and took a deep breath. He simply hoped that Master Tom wouldn't find out about that kick. He thought of what Adam had told him. All of his friends believed in him, he realized. And because of that- he could fight for them, for his team. He didn't have to be alone. He didn't want to be alone. He exhaled. He wouldn't be alone. Finally, he saw his opponent. From the opposite side of the bleachers, a tall individual was jogging up to the ring. He looked to the right, and saw the source of the loud cheers and whistles, the spectators of the opposite team. Squinting past the glare, Dan looked up at a boy about two inches taller than himself. He walked right up to the line in the middle of the ring, blocking the glare of the light, and Dan finally got a good look at his face. 

 

He was pale and thin, but unlike himself, he didn't appear muscular enough to land even a decent blow. He had a long face with blue eyes- pure, ice blue eyes that reminded him of Sheila's. Long, straight locks of crow black hair stuck out just above his eyes, lopping over to one side, the glaring white light reflecting off of the top of it. Who was this boy? he thought, the impact of his wonder hitting him off guard. He looked familiar somehow. He had a startling countenance, and he couldn't decide on how his strange appearance was so harmonious. But he looked- somehow peaceful, and his particularly composed features were somewhat mesmerizing, he thought to himself, absentmindedly recalling a poem from his uncle's old library.

 

"Upon a horse of mottled white  
there sat atop a noble knight,  
tall as castle walls he sat in wait,  
for the crow to come show him the gate."

 

Dan realized he had been staring at the boy for a moment. The boy, who had been- what had he been doing? Dan thought to himself in confusion. Dan wasn't sure. He looked like he had been talking to the crowd, as he stood totally relaxed and nonchalant. What had he himself even been doing? Suddenly, he saw the boy's attention rounded on him. He broke into a smile, looking directly at Dan, as though he were alone with him, just meeting up for a chat and a friendly lunch. He strode towards Dan. Dan was rooted to his spot. The boy reached across the divide, and grabbed Dan's hand in his own, shaking it gently. Dan's mouth twitched, but he couldn't seem to move. He looked down at the pale hand clasping his own, which retreated at the blow of a whistle. Then he heard the Ref call out, 

 

"Fighting stances!" 

 

And he saw the black haired boy bouncing, fists clutched, on the mat opposite himself. What? No, this was happening too quickly. Dan barely had time to shift into a back stance, briefly remembering his forms and their strengths, before the Ref yelled, 

 

"Begin!" 

 

For another split second, he saw a smile- and then, as if pulled into a separate dimension by a black hole, it phased into a blur. He felt a force slamming into his side, causing him to fall to the ground and roll over his head, landing on his feet. Dan stood up as quickly as he could manage- not quickly enough. He felt himself being pulled down violently, felled by a hook kick from behind. He heard the referee blast his whistle, and he yelled to the scorekeeper, 

 

"One point for Phil Lester!" 

 

Struggling to breathe evenly, Dan pulled himself from the mat, mouth hanging half open, and the Ref called, "fighting stances!-" And a few moments later, a whistle blew, and he saw the boy moving towards him, aiming a high jumping side kick at Dan's head, mouth open in a silent kihap. Dan leapt three feet back, knees buckling slightly, but he pushed himself up again, two fingers touching the mat. Just before he had reached full height a round, willowlike snap passed over his head, a current of moving air misplacing his hair. As though in slow motion, he watched Phil turn and skirt quickly behind him. He saw his body moving in his peripheral vision, coming from the left with a punch, which he blocked with a low perry, turning to face his sparring partner with a perfectly timed inside arm block to throw off an elegant, but heavy crescent kick. Dan turned his whole body, working his muscles along the lines of balance, and forced his momentum through a side kick, heel aiming directly for his stomach. The impact of the blow caught only his opponent's right side in motion, causing him to stumble. He looked mildly startled. A whistle blew when his hands touched the mat.

 

"One point for Daniel Howell!" 

 

His opponent pushed himself off of the mat, meeting Dan's eyes in concentration. He had heard the command to assume fighting stances in the back of his consciousness; now he focused on clutching his sweating fist to his chest, one outstretched in apprehension. The whistle blasted in Dan's left ear, causing him to start as he moved in with a forearm strike. To his surprise, Phil had simultaneously met him with the same technique, throwing him back a few steps. He had also been knocked a few steps off center, and approached with a front shuffle snap kick, but Dan skirted it and hit the top of his head with a hammer fist strike. Phil was smarted, his knees giving, but he threw a knifehand at Dan's stomach as he fell. Dan caught the edge of it, but avoided the misaimed blow. Smack. Phil's butt hit the floor. Phil. That was his name. The whistle rang out again. "Two to one!" Dan felt triumphant; he smiled a little as he looked down at his opponent, some of his pride restored, but his face fell when he saw Phil look up at him. Phil rose to his feet, turning his slender body to the right, all the while watching Dan as he adjusted the height of his guard. Dan did a double take, soreness inhibiting his posture as he returned to ready position. He turned his heel to the side, rooting it into the mat. A whistle blew, and Phil leapt towards him with a front kick that missed by at least six inches. Taking advantage of this, Dan reached his right side and threw a back fist strike, which was slightly too far to hit his moving target with impact. Phil turned frontally towards Dan, concern evident in his face, but Dan had already leapt forward, aiming both knife hands at Phil's shoulder blades. He yelled without meaning to, loudly enough to make a few of the spectators jump.

 

"HIIIAAH!" He was right on target, and his startled opponent wasn't moving. Two feet away from his target, Dan felt a force repel both blows, a strong grasp retaining his hands as his feet fell to the ground with an audible impact in front of Phil's. His momentum pushed him towards Phil, making him waver like a bowstring, still caught in Phil's iron grasp, both arms uselessly pinned in the air above his head. Shocked, he stared at Phil, who stared back, looking equally confused and shocked himself. Dan stared into his watery blue eyes for a moment, unsure of what to do. A whistle blew loudly, and Phil's arms collapsed inwards like a rubber band, throwing him off balance, taking Dan with him. He hit his collarbone on Phil's shin, sending hot pain through him, and he cried out. Phil scrambled backwards from where he fell, still staring at Dan. The referee hopped over onto the platform, kneeling beside Dan.

 

"Are you alright? Howell? Can you hear me?" He nodded, coughing. "Water," he mouthed. The ref yelled at the scorekeeper, who tossed one up to him. He caught it and handed it to Dan, who took a drink, spilling some down his uniform. He breathed through his nose, pushing hard with both hands and feet to get to a standing position, and assuming a ready position. Th referee had returned to his place, somewhere- there to the left. He was tuning out the referee, acting on instinct, and when the whistle blew, he blindly blocked as Phil threw a punch far to the left of him, leaving his body open to attack. Stupidly, he breathed there, arm still raised in a block, and Phil reluctantly aimed a punch right at his chest, but it stopped just inches from his right collarbone. Dan staggered backward, reaching for his shoulder. Then, Dan felt himself falling. He heard a girl yell his name, his arms rushing through space, and the din of voices rising. He felt his back smack against the cushioned surface and he blacked out as soon as his head hit the mat.


	3. The Hospital

(Saturday, April 14)

 

Dan opened his eyes slowly, heavily. He saw something green- a hazy ceiling, and a curtain. He opened his mouth to breathe, and found that his shoulder was wrapped in bandages and reinforced with a splint. His fingers twitched. A long tube was feeding liquid directly into his bloodstream, a heart monitor rhythmically spiking and falling with a loud beep for each heartbeat. His head ached, and his feet felt numb. He moved them slowly, and pushed himself up on the bed. He looked to the right, with heavily lidded eyes, and recognized the boy that had been his opponent sitting in the chair next to him, both of his eyes widened upon seeing Dan awake. He jumped up, talking quickly.

 

"Dan- I mean, that is your name??.. I-I haven't been waiting here the whole time! I mean- I came to check on you. The doctors wouldn't let me through, but your girlfriend told them I was her guest." He paused. "I just got here two minutes ago." He looked down, and then back at Dan. "You passed out. God, I- I'm sorry. I truly didn't mean to hit you so hard." Looking thoroughly guilty and embarrassed, he looked to Dan for a response. Phil thought of something. "Your girlfriend- she just left to go do something.She told me to stay here until she got back." Dan couldn't process everything Phil had just said. His head was pounding.

 

"My girlfriend?" He rubbed his temple. "You- Who-" 

 

"-Oh, sorry," Phil interrupted quickly. "My name is Phil Lester. Yeah, your girlfriend is the one who called the ambulance. Everyone looked really concerned. Your master called your parents. I don't think the call got through, though. I'm really sorry. " He paused again. "Your girlfriend is really kind."

 

Dan sat up higher in his bed. "Hold on- who are you even talking about? What do you mean, my girlfriend?" 

 

Phil replied, "I'm sorry, but I don't quite remember her name. I'm bad with names. I think it was something like, -Shirley? Shellie? Shela-" 

 

Dan turned a shade paler. "Sheila?" He asked in shock. 

 

"Yeah, that was it," he said. Dan wasn't sure whether he felt more angry, afraid, or simply bewildered. "What the fuck!" he yelled. Phil started. "Where is my mother?" He asked Phil. He looked taken aback.

 

"I'm sorry," he said, startled, "I have no idea. If you want me to go-" he cut himself short, looking thoroughly guilty. 

 

"No- wait," Dan said. Phil looked at Dan, surprised. Dan looked suddenly sober, a strange glaze in his eyes."It isn't you- I mean, it isn't your fault. My shoulder, I mean." There was a brief period of silence. "It was her- it was Sheila," he said, with conviction. Now Phil looked more confused than ever.

 

"I-" he stammered. "Your-"

 

"And she's not my girlfriend!" Dan yelled. Phil's mouth hung open. Dan laughed hysterically. "I must be GAY! GAY GAY GAY GAY gay..." He looked through Phil blankly, who simply stared back at him, dumbfounded. And with those words, he collapsed in his bed, hyperventilating. 

 

It took Phil a minute to recover from his shock. "Dan!" Phil exclaimed. Dan had passed out. Phil looked around wildly. Grabbing his hand and turning it over, Phil pinched his writs with two fingers, only to realize a moment later that he was hooked up to a heart monitor, which was still beeping rhythmically. His eyes wandered over to his other hand, which had a tube attached to it, running up to a drip. A morphine drip? Phil opened the door and yelled down the hallway. A nurse, coming around the corner, heard him and ran over.

 

"What is it, sir?" 

 

"Th- Dan, I mean the patient in this room, he passed out!" 

 

The nurse took one look at him and unhooked the morphine drip. "He's in shock. The morphine sent his system into overdrive." He tutted disapprovingly, continuing more to himself than to Phil. "Why on earth would anyone in this hospital give a youth so much morphine? And without prior knowledge of any medications taken in the last 24 hours. I'm sending for the doctor, and I'm going to pull the records and check to see who was assigned to this room." He rounded on Phil, who was standing apprehensively, watching the nurse's movements. "Was he delirious before he passed out?" 

 

Phil nodded weakly. "He asked me something about his mum. I- He said something about his girlfriend- well-- I mean- Sheila- was just here-" 

 

"Girlfriend?" The nurse cut him off. "Only family members are allowed. How did his girlfriend get in here?" Phil shrugged, mouth dry. "Hold on- what is your name?" What is your relation to said patient?" Phil opened his mouth to speak, but just then an angry female burst through the doors, holding a binder and a clipboard and looking like she was ready to flip hospital beds, whether or not they contained patients, to get at whatever she wanted. 

 

"I'm Sheila Howell," she started, "and that one's with me," she continued, motioning to Phil. The nurse looked skeptically at her.

 

"This unidentified visitor just informed me that you were the girlfriend of this patient. Do you mean to tell me that you are now espoused?" 

 

She scoffed. "As if I would marry such a loser who can't even take care of himself. No- that's my brother. My younger brother," she added, putting emphasis on the word 'younger.' 

 

The nurse looked thoroughly agitated. "So where are this boy's parents, as it seems that none of his paperwork has been filled out, where is your proof of identification, young lady, and who-" he asked, turning to Phil, "in the name of god are you and why are you here?" Phil had turned two shades paler than appeared humanly possible, and flopped down onto the chair next to Dan's bed.

 

"I told you," Sheila insisted, thoroughly annoyed, "He's with me. Check your records, you should know them by now. Our mother has a traveling job and she is currently on call for work this week; she couldn't come. Father is also on call abroad in America; he's in the british army, and he will remain there for the next six months. I am 21 and therefore you have no right to "young lady" me as I was legal guardian of my brother Daniel as of May of last year up until last month.This is Phillip Lester, boyfriend and now legal guardian of Daniel Howell. Dan has just moved out of our house and moved in with him!" She finished breathlessly, gesturing with excitement at Phil, who had drained of all color, plastered against the seat. She smirked slightly, then turned back to the nurse. "Now then, what are you doing?" She clapped her hands. "Get to it; check those records!" 

 

The nurse left with a scowl of anger and mistrust to check the hospital records, leaving her alone with a palid and slowly recovering Phil. After a few minutes, with Sheila watching him expectantly the entire time, he regained the will to speak. "What the bloody hell was that?.. Who- who are you??" 

 

Sheila stepped up to him, bending over slightly to level their planes of vision, and said, "I thought that had been established. I am Sheila Howell, the sister of Daniel here. I came to visit my brother. He is in the hospital, after all, and I'm concerned about him. Any other questions, Lester?" 

 

Phil swore she was repressing a smile. He pulled himself up in his chair with one hand. "You lied to me! You said that you were his girlfriend and that you were allowed in here! And now you told the Nurse that you're his sister, and I bet anything that's a lie too!"

 

"HA! A lie?" Sheila looked distainful. "It isn't a lie if everyone believes it to be the truth. And, fortunately, dearest, everyone believes it, because it is written on a piece of paper, and the only people who both don't believe it and have the power to change it are not here right now. I didn't tell a lie-" She said, moving closer to Phil and grabbing the arm of the hospital chair so that they were face to face- "I changed the truth." She stared menacingly into Phil's eyes. Phil was repelled by the overwhelming scent of her perfume and a heavy, smoky metallic musk beneath it that smelled somehow dangerous. "Oh," she added, letting go of the chair and standing upright, "And as for that boyfriend of yours- please take good care of him, okay? And good luck- you are going to need it for a while." 

 

"WAIT!" Phil yelled, anger rising, trying to mask his fear. "How do you know that I won't just leave him here, in the hospital?" 

 

She turned and smiled, as though the question were riddiculous. "Oh- you won't." And with those final words, she slammed the door, leaving Phil with mouth partially open in a slow, silent scream of discomposure.

 

(Sunday, April 15)

 

Dan Howell woke up in a place he did not recognize, his arm in a splint and a bandage around his wrist, in a ugly mint green gown that smelled like hospital plastic. His head throbbed, and his shoulder was slowly becoming painful to the point of nausea. He groaned loudly. "Mum!" He coughed a little; his vocal chords were out of use. "Mum!" He paused. There was no response. "Mum?" What had happened?... Dan lifted his arms, one at a time, which felt heavy. His collarbone was aching slowly and dully. He remembered fighting in the gym, and the period after class. That was when Sheila had approached him. Sheila... He moaned. In his head, he saw a blurred image of her in motion. Sheila had kicked him. He went home after that, but then he had slipped away from his mother, he recalled with guilt. He had tried to mask the pain, and went go fight in the tournament against.. someone. He hazily remembered the hospital, a blur of green and white walls and humming instruments. He had talked to someone, but what he had said, for the life of him he could not remember. He must have been hospitalized after.." Dan felt suddenly nauseous. Bracing himself against the couch, he rolled over onto his side, breathing heavily. He heard a door open, and a young man- he looked somehow familiar- was coming towards him, holding a bottle of pills and a glass of water. His eyes widened. It was him- the tall, ungainly boy with black hair and cold, living blue eyes- the one whom he had fought in the tournament. Phil. He sat down on a footrest next to the couch, swinging his legs over it to face Dan, and offered him the glass of water and a pill. He held up his finger, signaling him to refrain from speaking. 

 

"Don't ask anything until you take this," Phil instructed. Dan looked dubious. "It's your pain medication," Phil said flatly. "I'm assuming you're going to want it." Slowly, Dan reached out to take the water. He took a few sips, and held out his palm for the pill. He took it with a big gulp of water and coughed. He hoped the pain would subside. He could feel the blood pulsating around the inside center of his collarbone. Taking two breaths, he looked up at Phil. 

 

"What am I doing-"

 

"Here?" finished Phil. "I'm asking myself the same question. Maybe you should ask your friend Sheila, although I'm not sure I would call her your friend after what she did to you." 

 

"Sheila- Sheila!" He exclaimed, struggling to sit up, but he managed to get up halfway before collapsing onto the arm of the couch. "I need to talk to my parents!" He looked at Phil, frightened. "Where am I?" 

 

Phil sighed. "You are.. at my apartment." Dan sat erect, now further startled.

 

"Please, let me explain." Dan pleaded with Phil silently. Caving, Phil relaxed a little. Dan looked defeathered enough without his stiff attitude. After all, it wasn't Dan's fault. Phil was pretty sure this young boy, looking like a fish out of water, couldn't have meant to end up in a stranger's house with a broken collarbone, missing both of his parents. 

 

"Your- Sheila, the girl who drove me to the hospital to visit you, she ran off." Phil let out a deep sigh. "Do you remember anything that you said to me in the hospital?" Dan struggled to prop himself up. "Wait- hold on-" Phil reached over and grabbed the pillow from the opposite side of the couch. He swung it and grabbed hold of Dan behind his back, using the leverage of his forearm to keep the shoulder from moving and stuffed the pillow behind him. 

 

"Thanks," Dan said in surprise. 

 

"Don't mention it."

 

Dan looked as if he were trying to remember something. "I think... I told you Sheila wasn't my girlfriend." 

 

Phil nodded. "You were delirious." 

 

"Well," Dan continued, "She really isn't my girlfriend! Although, I do like her." Dan looked at the ground. He really didn't know what to think of Sheila, but he wanted to believe in what he had seen in her- the bravery of a fighter. "I really hope she isn't in trouble right now. Wait-" He looked at Phil. "She has something to do with me being here, doesn't she?"

 

Phil looked disconcerted. "She has everything to do with you being here. When you were passed out, she came back and told the nurse that she was your sister. I don't know what she did or how she did it, but the nurse bought it. He never returned. Then, they released you the afternoon of the next day." He looked directly at Dan. "Your parent's aren't here because of her. Somehow, I think she was responsible for sending them on call or something. She said that your mum would be back in a week and your dad would not be back until six months were over."

 

"But how?" Dan asked. "How did she possibly know them?" We aren't even friends, Dan thought.

 

"I don't know," Phil said, running his fingers through his long black hair. "But I'm sure that they will have found out that it was a hoax within the next week or two weeks at most." 

 

She tried to defend me, Dan thought. Ryan said... that she tried to defend me. So why did she do this? Surely she couldn't have been able to do anything that influential to his parents. Dan sat back on the pillow, covering his eyes with his hands. "I still don't understand," he murmured. "Why am I here?" 

 

Phil looked away. "She put you here with me- I mean at least until your parents get back. Why," he continued hurriedly, "I don't know." Dan looked too tired to be curious; Phil was grateful of this for now. "Listen, I'll be over here if you need me, okay Dan? You should get rest." Dan nodded slightly, and muttered "Thank you." Phil got up and finished preparing lunch- two sandwiches, one with a note attached to it, and one which he tossed into a paper sack with an orange and an energy bar. Thinking, he tossed an orange and a cheese stick in beside the sandwich with the note. He looked over at Dan- fast asleep. Phil closed the refrigerator, turning out the overhead lights except for the kitchen light, and retreated to his bedroom for the night, closing the door behind him.


	4. The Mayan Calendar

(Monday, April 16)

Dan hadn't been to school all day, and Ryan was thoroughly unsettled from That Night. Everything that happened replayed in his mind- the way Dan swayed slightly as though he were drunk, his expression of pain when he had fallen the last time, and the way he looked when he collapsed on the mat, unconscious. Then, everything had happened fast; too fast. He couldn't make sense of it all. Someone had called the ambulance which took him out; he thought he remembered Master Tom talking on the phone in the blur of events. He had wanted to visit Dan in the hospital, but he wouldn't have been allowed. He had called Dan four times since then, and he had not picked up or even texted a reply to say that he was okay. He had wanted to ask Master Tom what would happen to Dan and what the outcome of the match would be, but Master Tom had left. The match had continued, without both team's best fighters, but Ryan had stood his ground in the match, winning with a tripping hook kick. Kim fought admirably, but Maya seemed so distracted that she missed a kick and was felled no less than three times by her opponent, managing only to bring him down twice. It was unlike Maya to lose because of her execution of technique; she had never been sloppy, as far as Ryan could remember, ever before. Even his usual sparring partner, Misty, seemed distantly affected. Her pretty, oval face had been downcast after the night's practice as she sat on the sidelines, troubled by Dan's disappearance. He hadn't seen Maya at practice either, a complete anomaly, and he didn't share any classes with her. He called Maya twice, but she didn't pick up. Frustrated, he had texted her. He thought of calling her again, but at this point it seemed useless. He lay on his bed, staring discontentedly at the wall. Suddenly, his phone lit up.

 

Maya: We need to talk about Sheila. I think she's somehow responsible for the entire incident. 

 

Maya: Come over immediately if you can. Tell your parents that it's about Dan

 

Ryan replied: I'll be right over

 

Ryan Jumped up, put his phone in his back pocket, and trudged down the stairs. He rounded on his parents, only to realize they had already left for work. Of course. It was nearly noon. They had left a hasty note on the refrigerator. Taking the sticky pad, he scribbled a note of his own on a napkin, just in case they returned. 

 

I'm at Maya's house- I'll be back in a couple of hours. I have my phone

 

He took his rusty bike out from under the narrow side porch, and hopped on, biking to Maya's house two blocks away. He tried to count the houses when he reached Ferrous Loop. Four, five, six, seven. He braked and turned into the parking lot of a small, robin's egg blue house with a fenced-in garden in front full of huge exotic plants, fenced in and roofed with chicken wire. The rest of the lawn was unmowed grass and weeds which sent runners up the length of the sides of the disintegrating concrete. Ryan walked up to the door, which was peeling blue paint, and knocked loudly. After about twenty seconds, he heard the shuffling of feet and Maya opened the door. 

 

"You made it right on time," she said. "Come in." Ryan followed her into the living room, where she sat down on a low and very flat couch. Ryan pulled a chair up to the coffee table across from her. Maya looked up at him. "Do you know why Dan disappeared?" 

 

Ryan looked frustrated. "Well, that is the million dollar question, isn't it?" He looked apologetic. "He was just fine up until the match. I talked to him during practice." Staring into the middle distance, a pained expression ghosted his features. "It feels like it just happened last night. It just-" he broke off. 

 

Maya closed both eyes. "I know," she said. "Just try to keep recalling what happened then." 

 

"Okay," he agreed. Maya nodded. "He seemed to be frustrated, which I thought was unlike him, but I didn't want to press him or anything. Especially the day of a match. I know I should have; it's what a best friend would have done." 

 

Maya shook her head. "No, there is nothing you could have done, Ryan. It's not your fault." Judging from Ryan's expression, this was just the response he had been expecting.

 

"I know it has something to do with Sheila." Ryan added. "Dan said something to her the other day, and I think it made her mad." 

 

Maya nodded. "Yes, unfortunately, you are right. I think Dan was quite fond of Sheila, and she didn't take it very well. Then again-" her countenance darkened-" "she isn't normal." Ryan looked like he did not understand. Maya sighed. "Look, Ryan, Sheila is not a nice person- make no mistake about that. She is the one who is responsible for putting Dan in the hospital."

 

"And now he's missing!" Ryan exclaimed. "He won't answer his phone, I biked over to his place and used the emergency key and even his parents weren't there, and there is no one that seems to care about this or even know about it except for us!" 

 

Maya put her hand on his shoulder. "Slow down. That isn't entirely true. Master Tom called Dan's parents the night of his hospitalization. I talked to him today and told him that Dan was missing, and he is highly concerned. I told him that you went to his house and it was empty. He told me to get ahold of Dan's parents if possible, he's in the dark as to Dan's location. He disappeared, or rather, the hospital released him. The only question is to whom he was released; if it was his parents. It seems, though, that if this is the case, then they all must have gone somewhere, since their apartment is empty. What doesn't make sense practically is why Dan's parents would whisk their son away somewhere, fully knowing that he had a broken bone and needed bedrest."

 

Ryan still didn't look convinced. "Wait- hold on. You are implying that Sheila committed a serious grievance- no- a crime; that she assaulted Dan unprovoked, and walked away, leaving him in the hospital. What evidence could you possibly have of that? I saw him go down after that boy punched him in the shoulder!"

 

Maya shook her head hard. "No, no, NO! You have to pay closer attention. I watched his opponent strike, and the energy was never transferred to Dan's shoulder. His fist simply stopped, right in front of Dan's collarbone, perhaps centimeters away, and he passed out about a half of a second later. That the boy never touched Dan is key information." 

 

Ryan put his hand over his mouth out of habit. "I suppose I watched the fight from a different angle. Still, I guess you're right. Dan lingered for about a half of a second, then he just fell. Maybe the memory is sped up in my mind." 

 

"Yes, yes," Maya continued impatiently. "But here is the important part- our link between Sheila and Dan. I know Sheila was talking about Dan yesterday, for whatever reason, because I overheard her talking on the phone with her boyfriend Charli." 

 

Ryan looked somewhat surprised. "How did you overhear her?" 

 

Maya lowered her voice. "It was midnight, and she was just finishing her practice routine. I was there because I had heard her mention Dan earlier in a short call to her boyfriend." 

 

"She makes those all the time," Ryan added. 

 

"Yeah, I had never heard her mention Dan before, and I knew that Dan was trying to get her to talk to him. I was curious, but I stayed mostly because I was in the girls' locker room on my parents' ancient laptop researching my top ten college picks, and I lost track of time." 

 

Ryan gave her a weird look. "Only you would sit in a locker room, researching colleges until midnight to pass the time spying on someone," he said.

 

Maya chucked. "Well, it was something that I needed to do, and my laptop wasn't getting faster any time soon. In any case,I remembered at about fifteen till that Sheila was still there and I wanted to wait to eavesdrop until she called Charli." Maya leaned in closer over the coffee table. "I left the girl's locker room and crept across the hall, but I didn't have to be that quiet because she was yelling at him. First, she said that she wouldn't help him smuggle cocaine. That caught my attention. They were arguing about it, and I heard her say that Dan Howell was none of his concern." 

 

Ryan looked like he had been hit by a truck. "She said that she wouldn't help her boyfriend smuggle cocaine? Who is he?" Ryan asked.

 

"Dangerous," Maya stated. "He is the driving force behind Sheila's recent actions." 

 

"Still, how do you know Sheila was the one who broke his shoulder?" 

 

"Well," Maya hesitated. "She never said that exactly, but she told Charli that she would do whatever it took to keep Dan away from him. Then, she said that she was so angry at Dan, she would break him next time she saw him." She shook her head. "It doesn't make sense. Then, she practically purred and told him that she loved him." 

 

"What else?"

 

"Well, she told him that the B-ring would be dead and disbanded by the end of the week." 

 

Ryan hunched over, resting his elbows on his knees. "I just don't want to believe that someone, even Sheila, would do that to Dan," he said, rubbing his eyes. He looked at Maya. "I mean- first she defends Dan, then she agrees to play the part of an assasin for her boyfriend. What are we supposed to believe?" 

 

"It doesn't matter what we believe," Maya said plainly. "We have to figure out the truth. We have to find him; that is what is important in the end. There is a possibility that he ended up with his parents, and for whatever reason he hasn't contacted us or anyone else, but it isn't very probable. Right now, we don't know for sure, but we had better find out. For his sake. His time is limited; every moment that he is missing, he may be in greater danger. His life is on a schedule; think of a Calendar. Dan Howell is currently, unofficially, a missing person, as of Friday the 13th of April. We know who is responsible for getting him into the hospital; and I think we can probably safely assume that the same person is responsible for getting him out." 

 

Ryan looked up."How can you assume that? Even if she did kick him, and she is protecting him from some unknown threat that her boyfriend poses, however that makes sense, You don't know that Sheila has anything to do with Dan's release from the hospital! Hospitals have records-" 

 

Maya cut him off. "Precisely! Hospitals have records; the first thing we need to do is check them. That is the fastest method of getting to Dan. It also makes no sense that Sheila would get Dan somewhere if she were tying to protect him and then leave him there to fate. If she is not protecting him, then she would not have called the hospital, or told her boyfriend off in his defense. No- she wants him for wherever she has him for some reason, and she's overwriting law to get him there." 

 

"NO," Ryan insisted, "We have to call the Police. They will know what to do and this is their job!" He took a breath. " Maya, what would she do to us if she caught us interfering in her plan, whatever it is?"

 

"First of all, we have no evidence to give to the police aside from our eyewitness accounts. Second of all, we only have one thing that we know to be true, and you know we can't just go accusing Sheila of having a drug lord for a boyfriend- she obviously has a lot of intelligence, insight, foresight, and power, or at least enough to probably get rid of Dan's parents and send Dan to wherever she wants him. Don't act out of fear, Ryan." 

 

"The police could at least find out who has Dan, for a start," Ryan replied, irritated. "We need adults on our side, adults that know what is going on. You tell me not to act out of fear, but I think that you're afraid that the police will fail and Sheila's boyfriend will come after us!" 

 

Maya looked angry for a moment, then it gave way. "Look- You're right. I am afraid to have police involved with a sociopath that has the power to change people's lives suddenly and without warning or consequence. I don't know how they could ever deal with such a situation with only second hand accounts when we know Dan and Sheila better ourselves. We also are taking into account the fact that half of our evidence is based off of speculation and reasoning. I tell you what. We are certainly dealing with something over our heads. If we can't get the records ourselves, then we can call the police into the matter." 

 

"Maya- they are professionals. We are two teenage amateurs, trying to play the part of a sleuth, when our friend's life is in danger!" 

 

Now Maya was beginning to lose her temper. "The police interfere poorly in every situation and no good comes of it! Read the local papers. Murders, armed robberies, and drug cartels are running rampant! The police can't do anything! Wake up, Ryan! We aren't living in Utopia; this is the real world, where Police aren't always heroes, parents aren't always there for their children, and sociopaths have the power to control innocent people but enough so-called kindness to protect them as they destroy their lives!"  
She looked at Ryan, who looked badly wounded. her face fell. "We are both equally naïve, Ryan," she said. "We are teenagers trying to make decisions that the wisest adults struggle with. I'm no fountain of wisdom and neither are you." She looked back up at Ryan, whose face was straight, but at least no longer appalled. She sat back down on the flat couch across from Ryan. "Whatever we decide- she took both of Ryan's hands- "it is going to be for Dan's good, to the best of our ability. That is all that we can do." Ryan looked back at Maya uncertainly. "We must withstand a test of friendship that would split some of the most intimate of friends, and we must believe in and conquer what the greatest strategist and optimist might give up and call impossible. Master Tom has often taught us that we can be greater than we think we are, or perhaps even are, under extraordinary circumstances." She smiled. "Have you ever seen someone break four cement bricks whose greatest estimated net force can't even break half that amount?" 

 

Ryan pretended to stroke his nonexistent beard. "I'm assuming you're referring to Master Tom, and that you did some kind of calculation in Physics class or something." 

 

Maya laughed. "Yeah," she replied. "My point is-" 

 

"Nothing is impossible to a willing mind," Ryan quoted, finishing her sentence. It was his turn to smile. "Master Juan Cook Lee, Tae Kwon Do legend and founder of the Chung Do Kwon school." 

 

Maya smiled back. "You have your schools and masters memorized, Ryan. That is impressive. Master Tom would be proud." Ryan gave her a crooked grin. "I do try."


	5. A Call in the Dark

(Tuesday morning, April 17)

Maya pressed the phone's speaker to her ear. Come on, Ms. Howell, pick up your phone. Maya paced back and forth as the phone rang. Ryan sat on the couch opposite her, phonebook in his lap. She sighed. It was doubtful that she would pick up, thought Maya. Still, she hoped. Come on. 

 

At Phil's apartment, Dan was asleep on the couch when he dreamed that a phone was ringing. Ring! Ring! It was his phone. A python slithered over his feet, blocking his way to the phone. It was getting closer to him! RING! He woke up with a start and saw that the phone really was ringing, and it was sitting on the coffee table beside the couch. He stared at it for a second, and the picked it up and and answered it. "Hello?" 

 

On the other end of the line, Maya started. That was Dan's voice! She practically yelled, "Dan! Oh my God!"

 

Dan recognized Maya's voice, and she sounded like she had been worried. "Maya! Hey!" 

 

Maya was shouting. "DAN OH my GOD are you alright? We called your phone and you didn't answer! How did you get your mother's phone? Is she with you?"

 

Dan paused. "This is my mother's phone?" He pulled it away from his ear, put it on speaker, and unlocked the phone. It was definitely not his phone. 

 

"Nevermind, is your mother there?"

 

"No," Dan said. "I don't know where she went. Phil told me that she went on call, and my dad did, too." He hesitated. 

 

Maya interrupted, "Who's Phil? Dan where are you?"

 

"Phil is the one that I fought in the match," he answered. "He took me back to his apartment because-" Dan broke off. Why had Phil taken him here? As far as Dan was concerned, he was not Phil's responsibility. He should still be in the hospital.

 

Maya panicked. "What!?? Dan, why are you at his apartment? Do you even know him? Did he kidnap you? Is he with Sheila? Send us your location! We will be there as fast as we can!"

 

"No!" Dan said quickly. "Listen, it's alright. I didn't want to have to tell you, but- Sheila kicked me after practice on Friday. She broke my collarbone. I don't know how, but Sheila somehow sent my parents off on call, that's what Phil told me. He said that my Mum would be gone for two weeks, but my dad would be gone for six months. Phil said that they would figure out something was wrong, though, probably by the end of the week. He's taking care of me until I get back."

 

"Why, Dan?" Maya asked, pleading in exasperation. 

 

Why was Phil taking care of him? "I don't know, I guess he's just a nice person," Dan responded. 

 

Maya sounded less than convinced. "NO! Dan- listen to me! Sheila is dangerous! She set you up, and she has got you there for a reason, Dan! Her boyfriend is a drug lord who knows about you and I think he wants you dead! Sheila is his personal assassin, and you are caught right in her web, and she's just waiting for the perfect day to kill you and turn your house into a drug trafficking capital!" 

 

Dan was taken aback. He knew Sheila's boyfriend was no good, but to call him a drug lord? Sheila an assassin? He shook his head in disbelief. "Maya, no, Phil is trying to help me. He is just as confused as I am!"

 

Maya lost it. "DANIEL SEND US YOUR LOCATION RIGHT NOW! We are coming over!" 

 

Just then, Phil walked in. He saw Dan on the phone, and went over to where Dan was sitting. He heard a panicked female voice on the other end of the line. "Who is it?" He asked. 

 

Dan's eyes widened. "Maya, wait! Maya! This is Phil! He can explain what happened while I was delirious! Dan thrust the phone towards Phil. "She's my friend and she's really worried," he explained. 

 

"Hello?" Phil said. 

 

"DON'T YOU DARE TOUCH DAN!" Ordered an angry female on the other side. "I WILL KILL YOU IF YOU HURT HIM!" 

 

Phil jumped when she shouted. "Hey Maya," he said quickly, "This is Phil. I'm taking care of Dan. Please don't kill me, look, your friend is just fine!" 

 

"What are you DOING with him at your house?!!" She insisted.

 

Shit. Phil hesitated. "Your friend Sheila changed the hospital records," he replied. 

 

Maya went quiet. "She called the ambulance, and she drove me over to the hospital. She told me that she was Dan's girlfriend, but then she left me with him. When she came back, I was talking to the nurse. Then she told the nurse that she was his sister, and told me to take care of Dan, because I was in the records as his legal guardian. Heck knows how she changed his legal guardian from his parents to me."

 

There was silence for a minute on Maya's end of the line. Ryan had written down everything that they had said, and was chewing nervously on the end of his pen. "Okay," she replied slowly. "Can we come over?" 

 

Phil was nervous. "You believe me?" he asked hesitantly. 

 

"Yes, for now," Maya replied. "We have to talk about Sheila. She is the one who is responsible for this. Dan, send us your location, please. Phil- is it okay if I come over with Dan's best friend Ryan tonight? We have to figure this out together. It's the only way we stand a chance against Sheila." 

 

"Okay," Phil agreed. "I live on Four-" 

 

Maya cut him off- "Sssh no don't say anything over the phone! She might be spying on us or something! Just send your location." 

 

"Of course," Phil acquiesed. 

 

"Goodbye Dan, see you soon." And with that, Maya hung up.

 

There was an awkward silence. "Sorry about that," Dan apologized. 

 

"Don't worry, it's fine," Phil replied. "Your friend was just worried, that's all. I understand." 

 

Dan looked up at Phil, phone still in his left hand. "Why did you take me home from the hospital?" He asked. 

 

Double shit. Phil wouldn't be able to get out of this one, he thought. Dan didn't know enough about the situation. He would freak out if he told him what Sheila had said. Something in the back of his mind asked him, why had he done what Sheila had asked him? She was a liar and getting involved with Dan and his problems would mean nothing but trouble for him, that much was perfectly clear even at the time. But he couldn't have just left Dan there. He was a victim of his situation and it wasn't his fault. He needed someone to take care of him, and his parents weren't there. But why couldn't he have just told the hospital that the record was wrong? Would they have believed him? And Sheila had been so sure he would take Dan in. He thought about the way she had smirked after she called him Dan's boyfriend. What was she playing at? "Sheila changed your hospital records," he said again. 

 

Dan shook his head. "But I don't understand. Why would she do that? How could she change my bloody hospital records? And where are my parents?"

 

"For the last time," Phil said, exasperated, "I have no idea where your parents are. Your Dad is somewhere in America. She never told me where your mum was. I'm sorry."

 

"Why, specifically, am I at your house? What do the records say? Do they say anything about my parents?" 

 

Phil shook his head. "Dan- don't take this the wrong way. I didn't want any of this-" he stopped. "Sheila told-" but the Phone in Dan's hand rang loudly, interrupting Phil mid sentence. 

 

"Hello? Dan said loudly. 

 

"Hello, Dan," said a cold female voice. Dan looked down at the caller ID. 'Dan', it read. Someone was calling from his phone, and Dan didn't have to ask to figure out who it was. 

 

"Sheila," he said. "Why did you call? What did you tell Phil? Do you know where my parents are?" How did you get my phone? he thought. He heard Sheila laugh at the other end of the line. 

 

"So," she said, "He hasn't told you yet. How perfect!" She paused for a second, and Dan heard a clicking sound of a laptop trackpad. "Hello Phil," Sheila said. "Don't you think that now would be the perfect time to tell him?" Phil stood there, speechless. His face was beginning to heat up, all of the blood collecting in his cheeks. "No?" said the voice in mock surprise. "Well then, I'll just have to tell him myself. Dan! That lovely boy over there fancies you quite keenly! He told me while you were passed out. I drove him over to the hospital because he wanted to make sure you were alright. I told him that your parents would be out of town quite suddenly, and that they had told my parents that they didn't have anyone to look after you. They asked my parents to care for Dan rather last minute, but, you see, they are so busy at the moment. They are police detectives! As you know, crime in the city has been awful for a while, ever since-" she sounded sullen- "The gangs and the drug heist took over. Anyways, on a lighter note, I asked Phil here, and he agreed to take care of you!"

 

Dan stood up, staring at Phil, still holding the phone on speaker with one hand. "My parents- do they know? Please, Sheila, tell me they do." 

 

"Silly question. Of course I told them! They said to tell you that they love you and they will be back as soon as they can. I'm afraid, though, that your Mum won't be back for two weeks and your Dad, well, he's in America for half the year." Silence. "Well, ta ta pretty boy! I hope you break your other collarbone running into a wall!" And with those words, Sheila hung up. 

 

Dan was still staring at Phil, phone in his hand. He looked shocked. "Is it true?" he asked, shaking.

 

"No, of course not!" Phil managed hastily. "Sheila- she literally broke your collarbone and then told you that she hoped that you broke your other one! You can't believe her! She's nuts!" 

 

Dan felt a pang of shyness, which turned into confusion and anger. "Then why did she help me?" he asked in a defensive tone. "She called the ambulance, not anyone else, and she told my parents that I was okay and found me- well, to be honest, I don't know what kind of creep she found me!" 

 

Phil shouted back, "Don't be stupid! She probably is the one responsible for this! She sent your parents away! Didn't you hear what your friend told you? If you can't believe me, believe her! You said it yourself- she set you up!" 

 

Dan shook his head stubbornly. "She might be a liar, a little unstable, and she might be proud and foolish, but she isn't a hardened criminal. Deep down, she's a good person!" 

 

"Listen to yourself!" Phil shouted. 

 

"No, you listen to me!" Dan shouted back. "You- you lied to me, and then you took advantage of my situation! You took me in because you want-" he reddened. "Well I don't know what you want; you tell me!" 

 

Phil went from angry to hurt. "Dan," he said in disappointment, "You're right. I should have told you what Sheila told the nurse. She told him that I was your boyfriend and legal guardian! And the nurse believed it! It's Sheila who lied to you, -not me! I didn't tell you because I thought you would think I was a creep, but I guess that I didn't have to tell you anything for you to suspect it of me. I took you in because I felt sorry for you!" He looked straight at Dan. "I guess that goes to show how much being nice is worth." He tuned away, and grabbed the keys to his car. "Stay here," he warned. "I have to go over to my school. I need to get something important." And Phil slammed the door, locking it behind him. Without warning, Dan burst into tears.

 

Dan didn't really understand why he was crying. He was so angry, he wanted to throw something, but as soon as he stood up, a pang went through his shoulder, making him choke on his tears. He couldn't stop, so he just sat down and dug his fingernails into the couch cushion, chest heaving and tears streaming and obscuring his vision until his eyes were red. It was riddiculous. It was unjustified. But something had twisted him the wrong way, and it was painful. He sat upright, hand holding up his head. He raked it through, and grabbed a handful, trying to think of the pain. It didn't work. He wanted.. to go home. He wanted his friends back. Maya would know what to do, and Ryan hardly ever cried. He wanted Phil back. He felt a pain in his chest.   
You know you were wrong, said a voice in his head. Don't lie to yourself. Phil did nothing wrong.  
Why should I even care? said another defensively. He isn't my keeper, he was just nice enough to take me in, and I yelled at him and accused him of wanting to take advantage of me! Sheila lied. I'm just a horrible person, and that's all there is to it, he thought. I'm too stupid to realize that the girl I like just wants to cause me pain for her own pleasure. She doesn't even remotely care about me.   
Did You ever care about her? Asked another voice. Sure! he said to himself. Sheila was smart, and talented, and worked harder than anyone he knew. She was a scholar and an athlete, and he was jealous. She deserved to be where she was, and her anger at Dan was justified. After all, he had asked her out and just assumed she wanted his help. That was wrong. He was just angry at the mean and careless brute that was her boyfriend. She deserved better.   
Envy? Anger? Deserved better? Said the other voice. Since when is sympathy the same thing as having feelings for someone?  
Envy is a sign of attraction! Said the opposing voice. Therefore, Sheila broke our heart. She betrayed us.   
Idiot, said another, in Sheila's voice. He heard laughter ringing through his head- Sheila's cold, hard, merciless laugh.   
"Agh!" That wasn't right. Something wasn't right!   
Your reasoning is warped, said the voice of rationality.  
His sobs quieted. That voice was right. He couldn't think straight. Nobody could when they were crying. He just- had to calm down.   
Phil, said a final voice, and he grabbed the sofa pillow and cried into it.


	6. Interference

(The same day, at Dan's apartment, Tuesday morning, April 17)  
Sheila picked up the phone lying on top of Dan's bed, still partially charged. She put his passcode in and swiped through his recent texts and calls. 

 

Ryan: four missed calls

 

Maya: three missed calls

 

Mom: one missed call 

 

seven new voicemails. 

 

Sheila opened the messages app and tapped on each person's new message thread.

 

Maya

 

3d: Dan I have to talk to you about something. It's important

 

3d: Dan please answer me

 

3d: Look, I know you like Sheila, but something isn't right with her at all

 

3d: Call me tonight after the match

 

Sheila's real, strange laugh echoed through the house. This was perfect. Maya thought that Dan actually liked yours truly, the magnificent fate weaver. That was hilarious! She shook her head, chuckling coldly. Dan himself was blind to his own nature. No one believes a lie that is not thought to be a truth. Too bad for poor, ignorant Dan that she had mastery over both, she thought in mock sympathy. How many of his other little friends tried to talk to him when he was gone?

 

Ryan: Dan, if you get this message, please call back. We're all worried. Otherwise we will assume you are missing.

 

Maya: Dan, I know you probably don't have your phone, but this is just in case you do

 

Tom: Ryan, please come see me. You missed practice

 

593-224-8790: Hi Dan. It's Annie. Remember me? I was in your fifth grade class. One time your drew a picture of me riding a dragon and then passed it around the class and everyone added something to the drawing, and someone drew me with a mustache and pig feet and I got mad and never talked to you again. :) I'm in your bio class, two seats behind you. One of your friends told me to text you

 

593-224-8790: I think they're worried

 

She giggled as she read the one from Annie. There was nothing from his mum. Of course there wasn't. She had seen his phone on the bed before she left, and had looked for her phone in haste, but it was nowhere to be found. Oh, how worried she must be! Little Danny, all alone in the hospital, with a broken bone and no one to care for him but the nurses! She smiled viciously, moronically. Danny boy, on the other hand, must come to think his parents abandoned him! How fitting. How long exactly can one inflict pain before it begins to destroy the affected? She needed his parents out of contact for a week, and at the end of that week, if everything went right, which it would, she would just let his father phone his mum, and, of course, Dan would pick up. Danny boy, she thought with delight. Stupid, brave, talented, careless, gay little Danny boy. You are is a marionette and you and your friend's strings are all in my grasp.

 

On the other hand, she thought, I think I've got a better idea. After this little call, his parents will know where he is, and that wasn't all, oh no. "I think," she said to herself, "A call is in order." Scrolling through the contacts, she found his mother's number. Smirking, she hit send.


	7. Friend's Luck

Maya hung up, and turned back to Ryan. He looked as though he had been holding his breath, waiting for Maya to say something. Maya put the phone down, and stared at him.

 

"I can't believe it," She said. "Ryan- we found him." Ryan nodded. "Yes, I think that's been established," he said meekly. 

 

"We found him!" She repeated. "Now- the only question is getting to his location. He promised to send it as soon as he could." Ryan nodded. "Maya," he said, "I know you're worried about Dan. I am too. But- don't you think that we need rest? We have been doing this all day. I'm exhausted. It's not like we are going to be of any greater help to him if we just tire ourselves out." 

 

Maya saw that Ryan had not been exaggerating. He was slumped over in his chair, his hair tossed unevenly and sweat trickling down his brow. Why was he sweating again? Oh yeah, she made him bike back to his house and get the phonebook and then bike back. Maya thought that it probably wouldn't have been that big of a deal if it hadn't been 80 degrees outside at the time and humid. He looked thoroughly nervous and tense; he was fidgeting with the dials on his complicated watch, probably messing them up. 

 

"Time is of the essence, Ryan," she said. "I probably should have just biked with you over to the library to use the computers, but I thought it would be faster to just go get the phonebook." Ryan grimaced. She wasn't helping.

 

"In any case," she said, sitting up straight again, "we have to go over there tonight if we can. Let's see- what time is it?" "Nearly two," Ryan answered. "You sure about that?" Maya asked, looking at his hand which was still toying with the calibration knob on the watch. Ryan gave her a thoroughly exhausted look that said, 'If you don't believe me, check it yourself.' "Well then," Maya continued, "I would say we go over at seven. Until then, I am going over to his apartment." 

 

Ryan looked up at her. She was searching for something on her phone. "Why? Isn't it kind of dangerous?" Maya nodded. "Probably, but we need to get Dan's phone. chances are, his parents have contacted him, or at least attempted to do so. His phone is the first step to locating them." 

 

"Okay," Ryan agreed, "Obviously, but do we really have to go over there right now? There has to be some better way of finding them. You said that Sheila might go there at some point. Even frequently." Or worse, he thought. Her boyfriend. 

 

"Her boyfriend probably has no business there until Sheila has taken care of everything," Maya said, reading Ryan's mind. "And as for going over there- do you have any better ideas?" 

 

Ryan rolled his eyes in frustration. "No," he huffed. "I don't." 

 

"Me either," Maya admitted. "I have to go over there, but you don't. You stay here with my phone and take Dan's call. You-" she said, motioning at the pen and notebook paper sitting in front of him- "write down anything he says, of course, but in the mean time, make a list of the missing pieces- things to ask him when we visit; anything that we need to know that he might have some clue towards. I'll remain in contact with you the entire time via your phone. I should be back by four. If I'm not-" She looked straight at Ryan- "call the police, and don't come after me." Ryan nodded. "Here is my phone. The password is 2828. Ryan took his phone out of his pocket and handed it to her. "Thank you," she said. "Here-" Ryan tore the address to Dan's apartment from his notebook- "this is his address." Maya took it and slipped it into her pocket, next to his phone and her pocket knife. "Maya-" She turned around. "Yes?" "Be careful out there, okay?"  
She pressed her lips together. "I will be." And with that, she went out the door, shutting it firmly behind her.


	8. Nightingale

(Tuesday Afternoon, April 17)

 

After the call, she hung up. Perfect. Absolutely perfect. The plan was going like a dream. She opened her backpack and took out her laptop, which had a sticker on the top proclaiming it "Property of the U.S. Government." She typed in a couple of passwords, and then pulled up a webpage. Let's see. She proceeded to check on the location of Dan's parents. Scrolling down to zoom in on the map, she could see the exact location of them both using the GPS tracking system in their phones. Hacking it was easy to the point of ridiculousness. Sometimes she wondered why she didn't have everyone that she knew on this thing. Oh wait- she thought- I do! Hmm. 

 

She opened a separate page, typing in some more passcodes. It was entitled "People web," and consisted of birth records, police records, marriage and medical records, job records, and finally, summaries of the individual's personality and motivations from a variety of sources- Facebook and other social media along with personal e-mails and the occasional insider spy report for the most important of individuals. "Now let us see if I can't send that guy another e-mail. There. Now-" She said, pulling up a webpage called "connection 50", let's see what we can do here. She entered some figures into the coding of the website, and read its new status. There! She thought, thoroughly satisfied. That takes care of those two idiots. "Oh! How could I forget? Sheila said to herself. "Best for last." Unfortunately, this was only one she couldn't get to act of her own volition, at least without time that she didn't have. Besides, she was too lazy. Killing her would be easier and much more efficient. That she could set up to look like an accident. She just had to be punctual- right on time. She typed into the R. server and came up with an e-mail account- the very e-mailing account of Seborah Jones, head of the company that Ms Howell worked for, and typed this:

 

Dear Ms. Howell,

 

I apologize, once again, for any inconveniences caused by the sudden reassignment. I hear that your son was injured. I am at least compelled to tell you that he is being well taken care of by a kind and generous boy by the name of Phil Lester, whom I believe your husband knows and works with the father of the aforementioned. I think you will find yourself well compensated for the inconvenience. We have taken care of your traveling expenses-  
Sheila sniggered-  
and have seen that you have proper lodging as well. Thank you for your understanding and patience.  
Sincerely,

 

Seborah Jones  
Head executive of United Nations Healthcare company

 

Hmm, who would she get to succeed her in the company? The secretary; she was less of an ass and knew the company a hundred times better. She opened another page in her browser, and sat there working the puzzle bit by bit until she had succeeded in staging Seborah's death. There, done with that. Ha-ha, Seborah. Outside, she heard people shouting and cars passing on the street below. Interesting little hovel that Dan lived in, she thought. Just outside of the city.

 

Sheila heard a rattling of the lock and key at the door of the apartment. The door swung open with vigor, and someone walked into the living room. Sheila started at the interruption violently. She moved towards the window, looking through when she was close enough. Four flights down, cars drove on the street below. Charli. Panicking, she looked around the room. The bed was too short. She heard footsteps, but to her relief, they were not Charli's. She would just have to deal with whomever it was who came through that door. She turned around, and in that instant Maya walked in, one holding a brass pair of keys in one hand and a phone in the other. Maya look startled for a moment, then her face contorted in anger. 

 

"Sheila!" She exclaimed. "You!" She looked like her senses had momentarily abandoned her. "You- you psycho! You escaped blame, constructed some elegant cock and bull story to cover everything up and went and intervened to 'save Dan,' just so you could feel like some kind of hero, you crazy- no, you know what? No one can lie that much and get away with it. Not even you. Grandmaster Tom will find out. His parents will find out, and they will trace it back to you!" 

 

Sheila snarled. "I did him a favor, the little whelp. Everyone can see he needed some intervention on his behalf. That Phil of his will take good care of him for the time being, until I work everything out. At the end of that time, we'll see if he is right for Dan after all. His parents surely aren't. Besides," she said with a smirk, "The part about them being on call- at least for a week- is true." 

 

Maya's dark eyes widened. "What did you do! how could yo- how did you-"

 

"Oh, shut up," Sheila carelessly interrupted. "First of all, you couldn't have done it yourself, even if you'd had the nerve. Second of all- he has got a lot ahead of him." "I can see that," she added solemnly, "if no one else can. His parents don't neglect him, but they are of no help to their son. I can get him where he needs to be."

 

"And why- exactly- do you hold such conviction in believing that you are the one for that job?" she asked incredulously. 

 

"I don't have to explain myself, my plan will explain itself." Her eyes flashed dangerously. "You don't know what I was protecting him from anyways."

 

Maya was shaking with anger. "And what gives you the authority to play God in his life and move his parents? What demon possessed you and told you to 'protect' a perfectly self sufficient individual? And why do you care about what happens to him?!"

 

"ha! blind- blind- blind moralist!" Sheila looked at Maya condescendingly. "You can't see his flaws. I knew you would be this way. Why don't you ever talk to Ryan about him? You think he's too stupid to understand what's going on under his nose? Your conversations are far too general. Even Ryan has instincts, but he doesn't think to talk to you about them because he doesn't think you know Dan that well! I hate predictability."

 

"You stuck up bitch!" Maya exclaimed, edge in her voice. "I asked you a direct question? Why do you care about him? Why?"

 

"I already told you; you weren't listening apparently," Sheila replied in boredom. "Look, I have to go. It's Charli." 

 

"You are not getting awa- ooph" Maya fell backwards, hit squarely in the stomach, unable to breathe but in rage, and Sheila strolled out, door closing and locking behind her. 

 

She took her phone out of her pocket and pressed it to her ear as she descended the stairs out of Dan's apartment.

 

Charli: hey baby.

 

Sheila: yes Charrrli?

 

Charli: I need another delivery arranged. Fourth street, Michigan road. 

 

sheila: of?

 

Charli: Angel dust. Minor gang ring. 

 

Sheila: got it. I think I know who you're talking about. "Newbies." She scoffed. Aren't they awful?"

 

Charli: "Yes. I want their senior members dead and the gang disbanded. They are a threat to the entire system. They're far too careless. Don't forget to have the payment collected in advance; they have it for now." 

 

Sheila: hesitates. "Charli. That isn't our agreement."

 

Charli: "Kill them. You can kill whomever you want to kill without even touching them. They are low-lifes and they make it dangerous for your friend."

 

Sheila: Charli- I swear to god-

 

Charli: You know why you can't disobey me. I have all of your friends' souls in bags, especially that little whelp. Go ahead- hang up. They will be dead within hours, linked to you. Remember? I don't exist under the law. And that Dan- he will have to face me.

 

Sheila: You can't do that, you ignorant bastard. You might think you can, but you don't have the network set up fully yet. And if you remember right, the network's existence is thanks to me. And you can't afford to lose my trust. I'm dangerous.

 

Charli: You are of no danger to me as long as I know who you want protected. The system is now fully under my control; I change its order daily based off of a code permutation. You are the one who told me all about your friends. (Sheila hangs her head in guilt and humiliation; him finding out was an accident) I agreed not to kill them if you obey me, but remember that your trust is inferior in value to my control over you. And don't forget where you came from, Sunbelt. I protect you; you have nothing without me. Don't get so conceited. Now get out and do it. You have an hour. 

 

"NO- Charlie!" She shrieked, but he had already hung up. Sheila began losing her temper. She grabbed Dan's tabletop lamp and hurled it across the room, where it shattered against the wall with a loud crash. She bloodied her knuckles hurling a punch through a window, and she tore the poster in his room, ripping it down the center. Thrusting all of her weight into a dead drop, she split his desk chair like firewood and hurled the oak desk itself through the window. Panting, she slid down the wall, clutching her face with her fingers. 

 

Four stories below her, a car's roof was crushed inwards like a tin can, but she didn't pay any attention.

 

That was the ninth, the tenth, the eleventh, the twelfth, the thirteenth, and the fourteenth person she will have killed in a month. She couldn't kill anyone else. She couldn't. She couldn't.  
Something was rising in her chest like fire; a tunnel of fire, blowing through a window and devouring the empty concrete and heating up its iron frame, rising, rising to the melting point.  
Somewhere deep inside of her mind, she heard a voice crying out in the night, the sweltering heat playing up behind her as she stared into the darkness. It was her own; piping into the darkness, crying desperately, vainly, knowingly.

 

"Mother!...  
Mum! MUM! ...  
Mum, please! Daddy! I need you! ... Daddy! DADDY! Mummy? Mum please?  
Nightingale! Nightingale! Nightingale!  
Aaaagh! She pulled at her hair in pain. Make it stop! Make it stop! STOP!! Nightingale! Nightingale! Nightingale! She saw Charli in her mind, holding out his hand solemnly. Nightingale! Flames licked the sides of blackened concrete, reflection shining on the asphalt. Rings of smoke were pouring, trailing from the collapsing frame. He came out of the smoke; the smoke turned to cold, damp fog; the light shone behind him in an alleyway. He reached out his hand. "You can do this," he said.  
Charli.  
She could see him pulling him up as she got to her feet.  
He was right.  
She was a part of life. She was the girl who came out of the fire. Dying was a part of life; killing was a part of life.  
If she didn't kill them, they would kill her, and they would kill Charli, just like they killed her parents.

 

It was just a matter of who was killed, and they were not worth nearly as much as her. They were just fools, so much like her, but without the will to fight. They didn't try hard enough. They wouldn't try hard enough. They wouldn't even know to run, and that made them unworthy of their place on earth.  
They would end helplessly. Killing them was an act of mercy- someone would rather watch them die slowly. Someone would rather torture them to insanity. Someone would have them see the flames.

 

She would spare them that. She would end the path she knew to be so miserable down which they were headed before they could reach the end, looking into the chaos and reaping every ounce of malice they had sown.  
She would bear that burden for them.  
Watching them die would be satisfying.  
The most satisfaction that anyone could glean from this life-

 

a life full of sound, fury, and motion,  
a life that signified nothing.

 

She would put her life into a joint lock and force it to signify something.  
She would give enemies and friends alike no choice but to face it-  
a meaning she had created, staring into the face of the abyss,  
as a mountain lion looks off of a cliff,  
the unknown, unconquerable before it,  
-she had figured out a way to make the mantle of the earth touch the heavens.  
She had demanded the ground bow to her will,  
and she had made hell reconcile with heaven.  
She opened her icy blue eyes, and stared ahead fearlessly.  
she picked her phone up again.  
It was time to destroy them all.  
Her mother? Her father? No. They were gone.  
She would do this for herself. For Charli.


	9. Artificiality

(Tuesday Night, April 17)

 

Sheila dropped swiftly through the broken window, landing on three limbs and springing upward into a standing position with a catlike reflex. 

 

"Hello, Dan," she said. 

 

Dan started so badly that he fell off of the couch, tangling both legs in his blanket. Sheila couldn't help but smile. 

 

"Oh, my dearest, where is your boyfriend? I thought he would be here." 

 

Dan wanted to shout at her in anger, to trip her, to bring her down to his level and make her understand everything she had done. But he couldn't move. She was beautiful and terrible; she hypnotized him with her dance as she walked, hips swaying with the ease of an apex predator as she crept down further towards him, like a lioness tensing in the grasses, preparing to pounce on its prey. 

 

"I'm sorry- are you caught up at the moment?" She smiled, stepping on his blanket and trapping his legs beneath her. "I won't bother you for much longer. I wouldn't want to keep you from your Phil." She bit her lip and winked. Infuriated and confused, Dan started to say something, but it turned into a gasp of pain as a crunching sound was heard. Sheila was stepping on his toes, pressing them deep into the ground, and she ground them in. Dan howled in agony and swiped at her face as hard as he could manage, but she leapt backward, feet tumbling over her head, and landed squarely on her feet. "Why don't you come closer? Dan? I thought you would be eager to- leap- over and say hello!"

 

"GET AWAY FROM ME!" Dan yelled, his voice breaking.

 

Sheila laughed, sending echoes through the apartment. "Ah, Dan. Look at yourself. What are you missing? Why can't you fight me? She seemed to move from place to place without moving her feet. "Is it because I am a girl? No! Ha, ha, ha. Of course not. You don't believe me when I tell you things, but-" she said, her voice dropping to a whisper- "you should." She was now standing over Dan, one hand around his neck and slowly dropping her knee into his stomach, pressing it into his gut, and threatening to go lower if he moved. "I make truths; I am the god of them. And therefore, I am -your- god, because I am the god of liars. They pray to me for deliverance. So-" She said, grinding her knee into his hip bone, making him quiver and yelp as she ground his veins and nerves into bone, "your prayer has been answered."

 

She released him, flying backwards with ease as she drew into a backstance, and then lowered her guard. 

 

"Emotions," she scoffed. "Since when have they been real? Since when have you actually liked me?" Her stare bore straight through Dan, and he looked away, gulping emptily.

 

"Exactly," She said. "Not a thing. Since when have you felt respect and reverence for your parents? You do love them, don't you? Oh, shame it would be if you didn't. If you couldn't feel anything towards them."

 

She got a step closer, and Dan instinctively crawled backwards. "Love isn't real," she spat maliciously. "Love isn't real," she repeated, this time with a countenance of stone. She looked right at Dan. "I can intimidate you, hurt you, and make you feel pain. Anyone can do that," she said. "But I can't make you feel love, because that isn't how love works. Real love- it drives you insane, it doesn't drive you to insanity. And so you hurt yourself instead of someone else." Sheila looked into dan's frightened eyes, round and brown, so different from her own. "You are just like me, you haven't felt real love, have you?" 

 

Dan's fear flickered and dimmed for an instant. She was looking at him in the most peculiar way; it reminded him of an old photograph he had seen of his great grandmother. "Have you?" She repeated, this time not in a rhetorical tone of questioning. "Look at me." This time she spoke softly, encouragingly. She approached him, her blue eyes reflecting his own, and he was close enough to feel her breath against his skin. He drew back a little. "I am beautiful, aren't I?" She inquired in honey tones. "I remind you... of someone you know?" He stared into her eyes for a moment, her arms wrapped around his neck, and suddenly he remembered. 

 

It was the fourth grade, and Dan was sitting on top of the monkey bars, swinging his legs and throwing sunflower seeds at the little birds flitting on the ground below him and his friend Aiden. He was laughing, and he felt perfectly happy in that moment with the sunlight pouring in overhead, obscuring his vision. And then- he had been distracted, right hand raised to throw another handful of seeds to the birds, as he saw a boy walking towards him- a tall, red-haired boy with the palest, bluest eyes he had ever seen. He bent over, scooping up the red baseball cap that had fallen off of his head moments ago, and he handed it to Dan. He smiled, the corners of his eyes creasing and his face splitting into a smile. "I think you dropped this, mate!" he had said. He had pale skin and uneven teeth, and strands of his hair caught the light. He looked into the startlingly blue eyes, upturned in kindness. Dan felt butterflies in his stomach, his legs going slightly numb as they hung motionless like dead weights from the top of the monkey bars. He only realized that he had stopped breathing when the boy thrust the cap into his hands and said, "Well, there you go! I'll see ya later chappie! Got to go to my next class!" And Dan had watched him cavort all the way to class, yelling at his other friends and dropping his textbook. 

 

Dan was flung back into reality by a slap in the face- Sheila struck him broadly with the palm of her hand. Somehow, he barely felt it. His stomach had gone tight, and it got tighter and tighter. He looked down. Sheila wasn't pushing her knee into his stomach. She had backed away; he hadn't even noticed, and was sitting, emotionless, watching him from a short distance. He felt panic, fear, and- something else gripping him. Realization; knowingness, pushing, pushing, pushing! He ran across the hall to the bathroom and flung himself over the toilet, retching horribly. He was feeling dizzy,; his vision was blotching, and his head was spinning, slowly blacking out until he couldn't see. Both hands splayed on the ground, he drooled onto the tile, his head lolling. He let it roll around in its socket, praying that he would't pass out, that it would pass, that this feeling gripping him would pass! He wanted to yell, but all that came out was an indiscriminate moan of pain. He was going to throw up. He was going to throw up. But he didn't.   
Suddenly, he felt an arm wrap around his waist. He didn't care anymore; he leaned against the person, clutching their shoulder. He felt slim female arms turn him and pull him into a hug, one hand resting on his back. She squeezed him gently. "It's alright," Sheila said, this time in her own voice. "Dan- it's alright." She held him as though the fate of her own independence rested upon it. She hugged him as though every terrible thing, every cruel act she had performed to hurt him, she regretted morosely. She hugged him like her very soul depended upon it, and then she brushed his cheek with her lips, and faced him. "I know you're scared," she said. He felt a lump rising to his throat. "Don't let anyone make you scared. They don't have the right." She tilted his chin gently up to meet her gaze. "You may yet not understand," she said, "But true love is the most valuable thing you will ever have the opportunity to keep." He met her eyes, which were shining. "Keep it and hold onto it like you have nothing to lose- because you don't. You-" she said, emphasizing the word, "never will." She helped him to his feet and looked at him sadly. Then, she strode over to the window, yanked the grappling hook from the top of the building, and secured it over his window. "Good luck, Daniel Howell," she said, and with that, she was gone.

 

Dan rolled over, opening his eyes in surprise. He wasn't at his apartment. He was... on Phil's couch. He sat up and shook his head. Was that all a dream? Could it have been? He looked around the room. He cupped his forehead in his hand. What was that? Well, that would be counted as a nightmare. He would try to forget it as soon as he could. The room was silent, and it was exactly as it had been before Phil had left. He felt his heart sink to his stomach. Phil. 

 

Dan rolled over onto his stomach, and realized that there was a new message from Phil on his mom's phone.

 

7m: Hey Dan. On my way back with groceries. Sorry I got caught up at the school.

 

4m: Hey, I'm also sorry about what I said earlier. I didn't mean it. 

4m: I like having you. It is actually pretty lonely to live by yourself

 

Dan's heart flipped. Phil liked having him there. That made him feel better; he felt his heart rising in his chest. Phil forgave him! He realized he was still tangled in the blanket that was present in his strange dream, and his shoulder was no longer throbbing. He looked at the time. 7:20, it read. He had really been asleep for that long? 

 

Just then, the lock rattled, and in came Phil with a backpack slung over his shoulder and a brown paper bag full of groceries in his arms. He set his keys down on the table and heaved the brown grocery bag next to the refrigerator.

 

"Hi," he said, a little sheepishly. "I'm sorry I left you for so long." He fiddled in his pockets, taking out his phone and sending a text message. He looked up at Dan and suddenly remembered something. "Oh! I almost forgot your medicine. He ambled over and took a pill bottle off of the counter, and then filled another glass. "Here you go," he said, handing Dan the glass. 

 

Dan swallowed the pill and then drank the water down and set it on the coffee table. He realized Phil had been staring at him anxiously. "I'm sorry I about what said earlier," he said. "I- I really like having you. You seem like a really good person." Dan looked at Phil in mock skepticism. 

 

"You said really twice." He laughed. Phil laughed too, slightly nervously. "Well, it's true, in any case. Also it's nice to have someone you can relate to, someone that's good at Tae Kwon Do, I mean." He sat up. "That kick you hit me with- the side kick- that was, like, perfect execution and technique." 

 

"Thanks," Dan said, reaching his arm back to scratch his head, but wincing when he realized that it he was using his right arm. "So do you know Tae Guk five?" he asked. Phil nodded.

 

"But my Sa Bo Nimh says that I need to work on my kicks. I still haven't quite gotten down the Roundhouse and the front shuffle kick. It's hard to be delicate with those." He brightened. "Hey, you could help me practice! When you get better, I mean. We could practice together." 

 

Dan nodded. He yawned widely, and stretched his left arm and legs. "I was asleep." He straightened up, looking at Phil. "You know, Sheila is a pretty awful person, but I think I can forgive her for putting me here with you." He realized what he had just said, and added quickly, "I mean- as opposed to her drug addict boyfriend or something." He breathed in through his teeth. "I mean, I didn't- I'm not glad I'm here because I know I must be an inconvenience, but-" 

 

Phil shook his head. "No, you're not an inconvenience! It isn't your fault. look, I don't know what your crazy friend is trying to do, but I want to help you. Besides, the worst thing you've done to me is passed out on me! I can't say you're a burden. You haven't even eaten anything!" Phil remembered something. "I made you a sandwich yesterday." 

 

Dan rubbed his neck gingerly with his left hand. "You did? Thanks. Actually- could I, possibly, have that sandwich now?" 

 

"Of course!" Phil jumped up and took it out of the refrigerator, along with the cheese stick and orange sitting next to it, and handed them to Dan. "Here you go. You must be pretty hungry." Dan didn't say anything; he just took the sandwich out of its plastic sleeve and took a bite. Oh my god, food. Phil watched as he hungrily devoured it, and then tore at the skin of the orange, eager for more. Phil sat down, and scratched his head.  
"So, you're in- what, the eleventh grade?"

 

"Twelfth, actually," Dan said, shoving a slice of orange into his mouth. 

 

Phil nodded. "That's cool. I'm a Sophomore at the University of Manchester. I'm studying video editing." 

 

Dan looked up at him, a little bit of orange juice running down the side of his mouth. "Really? That's where my friend Stacy went. She said she really likes it there," he said, still chewing. 

 

"Yeah," Phil continued, "It's really nice there. I met my best friend Thomas there. Actually-" he said, pulling out his phone- "He says he wants to drop by this evening. We have a huge final in Physics class on Friday. Don't ask me why Uni has it as a requirement; I'm terrible at it. In any case, he's just gonna come over for an hour and we are gonna review for the test, is that okay?"

 

Dan nodded. "Your house," he commented. Suddenly Dan remembered something. "Phil! I almost forgot. Maya and Ryan, my friends; they were going to drop by tonight!" 

 

Phil's eyes widened. "Ah! I almost forgot. I'm sorry! Well, will they be wanting to talk to me? Thomas shouldn't be here that long; he has basketball practice at nine." 

 

"Okay; that's fine," Dan responded. "I don't know what they are going to be wanting anyways." He sat upright on the couch, and checked the time. 7:57, it read. "Phil- about earlier-" he looked uncomfortable. "I think you're right. Whatever Sheila is up to, it's bad, and probably dangerous." He sighed. "I just- didn't want to believe she was that kind of person, but-" he looked at phil, biting the corner of his lip- "it's obvious that I was wrong.". He looked away, thinking of his friends. What must they be thinking right now? He just disappeared with a broken bone and hadn't even texted them. Maya finally called him by accident, otherwise they never would have made contact. He didn't even want to think of his parents right now. He supposed they would be alright; they were gone a lot anyways. As soon as they got word of where he was and that he was fine, they probably wouldn't worry. That is, he thought, if they got word. He sincerely hoped that Sheila, however crazy she was, wouldn't let anything happen to them. He wasn't sure, though. She didn't kill him, even though she probably could, and it seemed she had some unknown reason to- that was all he knew. 

 

Phil piped up out of the blue. "I'm truly sorry about the whole boyfriend thing." Shiittt. Why did he say that? Way to make it awkward, Phil. 

 

Dan felt himself heating up and said quickly, "Don't mention it! I mean, it's fine." 

 

Idiot, idiot, stupid guy. What's wrong with you? Phil thought to himself. He looked at Dan, who was picking at a thread coming off his hospital gown. He had long, thin arms and pale cheeks. His hair was curling in the humid air into cherubesque ringlets, and, he noticed, his cheeks were burning. He looked away. Think of another subject. Think of another subject!

 

"I saw a rabbit hopping down the middle of the road yesterday!" Phil said. What the heck was that? 

 

Dan looked up at him in confusion. "A rabbit?"

 

"Yeah," Phil continued nervously, "A white one! I think he was late for a very important date. Or maybe he just thought it would be faster than taking the freeway." 

 

Dan laughed aloud. "Oh my god, Phil." He smiled, staring right at him. "You're so weird." 

 

Phil grinned. "Ha, I guess I am, but you aren't exactly Mr. Normal yourself. I mean, your crush is a psychopath who sent you to the hospital! Not to mention-" 

 

"She's not that bad!" Dan laughed. "And anyways, I don't even like her any more." Dan's stomach contents halted digestion. Why did he say that?

 

"Well I should hope not!" Phil grinned. He got up and sat down right next to Dan, and clapped both feet against the floor.

 

Dan could feel Phil's warm leg pressing against his own. This was... so perfect. He sat perfectly still. He hoped Phil wouldn't move, that he wouldn't speak, and that he could just sit and hear his own heart beating while Phil sat next to him. He wished that he could just stay exactly like this forever- broken shoulder and all. He didn't know why, or for that matter care, but Phil made him feel better. 

 

"Hey Phil?" Dan looked up. "Yes, Dan?" "Thank you for taking care of me," he said softly. Phil gave a single nod and flipped his fringe out of his eyes. "You too- I mean, thank you for keeping me company." He looked down. I don't know what I would be doing without you honestly, he thought. I don't- I didn't have any motivation. I didn't know why I was wasting my time, alone, talking to a camera. But you- you're different. Every time I start to think that everything I do is pointless, I look at you, and... suddenly, it isn't. 

 

He had to tell Dan what he was thinking. He wanted to so badly. This seventeen-year-old boy, so innocent, so helpless, looked happier than he had ever been himself, except for in this moment. Now- everything had changed. He was not happy- no, happiness isn't comparable to this feeling welling, seeping within him. This was like contentment, but profound, as wide and as stretching as the distance of the night between the stars of the sky. He didn't know what to do; he didn't know what to say. He didn't want to think about it. That complicated everything unnecessarily. All he wanted to do was stay here until the stars came out, and sleep well for the first time in months. Sleep, on the old couch, right next to Dan. That was how he wished the night could end. 

 

But, of course, it couldn't. Phil's phone buzzed loudly. It was Thomas. His first reaction was annoyance until he remembered the study session. He picked up the phone and got up. "Thomas. I'm sorry; I totally forgot."

 

"It's fine," he said. "I did the same exact thing. I'm at practice now anyways. Do you think we could meet tomorrow for a little longer instead?"

 

Phil breathed a sigh of relief. "Yeah, sure man, that'll be fine. Okay. Right. At 4:20? Got it. Okay. Bye."

 

He hung up, and turned back towards Dan. "Did your friends ever call and say when they were stopping by?" Phil saw Dan's eyes widen in the dark. "Oh, shit, I forgot all about that. I didn't send Maya my location. She's gonna be mad." He unlocked his phone and scrolled through his contacts until he found Maya. Location> Share my location. What had she messaged him? 

 

702-278-2940 

 

Dan! Are you alright?

 

Please message me back

 

listen; I'm going over to your apartment to get your phone. My phone tracks it as being there, and your mom or dad might have called you. I'll bring it over

 

His heart dropped as he read the last one.

 

Sheila was there. She hit me in the stomach and ran off. I'm fine; she obviously wasn't trying to hurt me. I did get your phone. We have a lot to talk about

 

Dan looked up. "Maya saw Sheila at my apartment." "What!?" Phil exclaimed. "What was she doing?" "No idea," he said. 

 

Phil stared at the phone in Dan's hand. "Dan, would you mind telling me a little bit more about Sheila? She's crazy, and she's a martial artist; that much I know. But there must be something more. Why is she doing this? Does she really hate you that much? Will we be able to stop her-" and get your parents back, he thought. "What is it that she wants from you?"

 

"I don't know," Dan said honestly. "Maya is the smart one who figured everything out, with Ryan's help. She told me that her boyfriend, Charli, was a drug lord, and that Sheila wanted my house as a drug trafficking location or something. I thought-" he continued, looking at Phil, "that she probably wanted me dead, but that doesn't seem to be the case. I guess if she killed my parents then she could take control of the apartment. She doesn't have to kill me to get control of it really since I have no claim to it. I think she wants me alive for something, I mean, she must, right? Otherwise she wouldn't have gone through so much trouble to put me somewhere else." I'm part of a drug smuggling scheme, he thought with equal measures of humor and concern.

 

"Her boyfriend is a drug lord? You're sure of that?" 

 

Dan shook his head. "Maya is the one who figured it out. We have to talk to her as soon as possible. Until then-" he stood up- "I am in danger, and I am a danger to you." He turned his dark brown eyes on Phil.

 

"Dan- I think you need to be careful. That is all. I'm not going to lie and say that it isn't startling, to think that someone like that might be a threat to you. But-" he hesitated- "I'm not going anywhere." I must be crazy, he thought. But when he saw the gratitude in Dan's eyes, if felt worth it anyways. "It seems that we are both in no immediate danger, but I think we need to figure out where Sheila is going with this before she has us completely trapped into whatever she's planning."

 

"Yeah," Dan agreed. "She didn't hurt Maya, thank god. I don't know what I would have done if she had. I don't know what I would do without her; you know. She is the one who has a chance at derailing Sheila, and that will give us a chance to set things straight." 

 

Phil felt a pang of jealousy. "So.. Maya is, I mean, you fancy her?" Dan looked like he had asked a strange question. "What, you mean like like Maya? No, that isn't what I meant," he responded. "No, she takes care of me. She is a very loyal friend; she's almost like a mother to me in the way she looks after me and advises me and stuff. But-" he said, laughing, -"seventeen years old. And much better than my actual mom at that kind of thing."

 

Phil felt ashamed for having asked the question. Of course he didn't like Maya; he had liked Sheila. Had liked Sheila. Something like triumph fluttered in his chest. Maya was his best friend, and she was the one trying to help Dan, and by extension, Phil, to get out of the situation. Even if she were trying to impress Dan- he felt another pang of jealousy. What was he thinking? Phil would get Dan off of his hands and back into his own life where he belonged. Maya would be quite good for him, he thought. Maya was a lovely person, and she was trying hard to help him in any case. So why did Phil even care? Why was he getting so protective of this young seventeen year old boy?

 

For heaven's sake, Phil, he thought. This boy is in danger and all you can think about is whether or not one of his friends is interested in him. Irrelevant! "Dan," he asked, "Do your- would your parents be trying to get back to you right now? I mean, they have got to be really concerned."

 

Dan shrugged. "I don't know. Sheila said she would tell them where I was and that I was safe, but I guess I can't trust her word." He picked at his sleeve in the same spot, where a string was now hanging off of the garment. "I mean, we've never been super close. It's not like they don't care about me, but I think they are probably too busy at the moment to be that concerned." 

 

Phil looked down at the lithe boy curled up on his living room couch. Now he felt really bad about questioning Maya's intent. He didn't have a motherly figure in his life besides her, and it didn't seem like he had much of a nurturing fatherly one either. Now, both of his friends were looking for him, and all Phil had thought of was how he never wanted Dan to leave. He startled himself with this realization. Is that what he wanted? Is that even what Dan wanted? 

 

Whoa. Phil was way out of place. He was supposed to be helping Dan, like Sheila had told him to do. Contention arose quickly from within him. Why was he even listening to what an actual insane psychopath with selfish intent and a dangerous personal connection had told him to do? This wasn't even his business; it shouldn't be his business! Some force outside of his power- he looked at Dan- had put him here. Immediately, his attitude softened. Dan was looking at Phil with something like questions in his eyes. He knew one thing- he would take care of Dan until that menace of a girl was locked away along with her boyfriend. Then- he could start thinking about everything else.   
What else? Asked a voice.  
Shut up! he said to it.

 

"Okay Dan," Phil said. "It's late right now, but text your friends and tell them that they can come over tomorrow evening whenever they want. I'm going to be at Uni from eight in the morning until two thirty tomorrow afternoon. If you ever need me for some important reason before then, call me and I'll be over as soon as I can. If it's an emergency, I'll drop everything and be right there, and do not hesitate to call me either. I don't want you hurt." Phil didn't want to think of what else they could do with Dan. He just hoped, rather stupidly, that Sheila and her boyfriend had no idea where his apartment was. 

 

Dan looked up into his pale blue eyes. They were so beautiful. He looked concerned. "Phil, why are you even doing this? Don't you know that I'm dangerous to keep in your apartment? I could go back to my parents' apartment-" 

 

"No!" Phil said, more loudly than he had intended. Dan looked startled. "I mean- if you stay there, you are in so much danger. Sheila knows where you live. There is no one even at your house, Dan, you would be sleeping alone, at her mercy!"

 

"My friends know where I live! They would stay with me," he protested.

 

"Even if that is so," Phil continued, heaving a sigh, "You don't know what would happen if you suddenly divulged from her plan, whatever it is. She might be the only thing between you and her boyfriend that wants your apartment, and you're protected from him right now, whether it was by intent or a happy accident. Maybe she isn't the dangerous one; maybe it's just him, and she's somehow trying to manipulate you but keep you away from him."

 

Dan sighed. "I'm not that important; I'm not even sure what she would want to do with me."

 

"I don't know either," said Phil, "but I do know that you are one of the most talented martial artist's I've ever met." He smiled at Dan, who looked flattered.

 

"Well, if she really is trying to kill you, which doesn't seem quite right, then she's an idiot, and she's doing a terrible job so far," Phil remarked. "But I'm not taking any chances. I don't trust her or her boyfriend. In any case, I'm not letting you go back over to that apartment, so you might as well let the subject drop." 

 

Suddenly, Phil felt a skinny pair of arms around his waist, and a flat chest pressing against his own. Phil blushed, wrapped up tightly in Dan's embrace, and put his own arms around him, closing the circle. "Thank you, Phil," said a muffled voice from his shirt. "Thank you."


	10. What's Understood

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This is going to be a long chapter... so begins the lengthy chapters. Enjoy. <3

(Wednesday Morning, April 18)

Dan woke up on that same couch where he had spent the night before, only this time, his head was leaning against something... breathing? His eyes fluttered open, and he realized that he was resting his head on Phil's chest, who was sleeping deeply. Quickly, he got up, his face burning. Had he been sleeping like this the whole time? When did he fall.. asleep? Dan yawned widely. He was still only partially awake. He gazed at Phil, who lay draped over the corner of the couch, blue eyes closed off from his sight. Phil's neck was tilted to the side, exposing his chest in a modelesque fashion, with one arm up over his head, hanging over the back of the couch. Dan didn't want to get up yet. He didn't want to leave the delicious warmth of Phil's body, to abandon the comfort of being next to him. His heart beat faster in his chest. Maybe he wouldn't notice? He was quiet for a moment. Phil was fast asleep. The curtains were drawn, and no sunlight told Phil that he should get up. Carefully, he put his head back into its resting spot. He nuzzled further into his warm shirt, and pressed his ear against Phil's heart. Thump thump, thump thump. Mmm. Suddenly, he had a crazy idea. Too crazy. He didn't care, he thought. This wasn't morning yet, and if it wasn't day time, it wasn't really happening. His heart was leaping into his throat. He ever-so gently reached across Phil's chest to his right shoulder and slowly rotated his own hips, picking up both of his legs and sitting on Phil's lap, facing him. He curled up into his warmth like a child clutching its mother, and wrapped both of his arms around Phil's torso. He pushed his legs down on either side of Phil's and closed his eyes, blissfully listening to Phil's heartbeat and feeling his body rise and fall in steady motion against his own. Rise, fall, rise, fall. Rise rise fall, fall rise rise. He felt his own breath dancing with Phil's. He pulled his arms closer together, clinging to Phil like a human blanket, melting further into the embrace like butter on a hot iron pan. Don't wake up, he wished vaguely. Stay... Never wake up. He let the weight of his head press into Phil's chest. Just sleep here... with me... and don't tell anyone you dreamed of this. Because, it is just a dream, he thought. This closeness... this perfection... this is all (yawn) just... a... dream...

An hour and a half passed before Phil stirred in his sleep, as he was beginning to feel quite short of breath. Something heavy was pressing against his chest, weighing down his entire body. Something... wonderfully warm and soft- a person, he realized. Natalia? No... they broke up months ago. He reached up, eyes still mostly lidded, and felt through a head of short ringlets. Ringlets? He half-opened his eyes. A small male figure was elegantly wrapped around him, one thin arm resting as though it were supporting the small of his back and the other gingerly placed behind his shoulder. It was Dan.  
He was flooded with surprise and embarassment, and what felt like at least ten other emotions all trying to surface at once. Dan was fast asleep. Fear became dominant for a moment. Was he awake? No, his breathing was even and steady. What was he doing sleeping on Phil like this? Surely it couldn't have been on purpose.  
Pfffh, yeah that totally wasn't on purpose, said a voice sarcastically. Everyone knows that people just end up laying on top of you with their arms and legs wrapped around you by pure coincidence.  
He ignored that voice.  
Another emotion was quickly overtaking him.  
This must be how mothers feel when they hold their infants, he thought to himself.  
Yes; mothers. Phil didn't think he had much of a maternal instinct, but he guessed he was wrong. Holding Dan flooded him with a certain kind of closeness, some type of caring that permeated his subconscious. He wanted to care for Dan forever.  
Mother Phil, said the same voice. Are you going to start adopting cute teenage boys who turn up without a family? Maybe start an orphanage?  
Phil ignored that voice again.  
What should he do? What would he do if Dan woke up like this? He felt fear grip him again. Get him off!  
Dan stirred slightly. Phil held his breath as Dan moved his head, sinking further into his chest, and moving his right hand an inch higher, wrapping his fingers around Phil's shoulder. Phil sat, rigid, silently praying that Dan wouldn't wake up. His head was tilting inwards towards his heart, Phil noticed. He was more comfortable than any blanket could ever be. Having Dan lay on top of him felt like a down comforter, only a thousand times nicer. If there were a Dan blanket, he would definitely buy it.  
What are you thinking? Said another voice. What the actual hell? A Dan blanket? Wake up you bloody moron!  
Phil didn't want to move. He felt trapped; frozen.  
Get up! Said a different voice. For god's sake, Phil, just peel him off of you and get up! Or else he will wake up, and explaining this will be a lot harder than explaining that some crazy girl decided to make you his provisional boyfriend.  
Carefully shifting his weight to the side, he unwrapped his arms from his chest and put his hands underneath Dan's armpits and lifted him with some difficulty, struggling to support his right shoulder and swiftly but gently transfer him to his side on the couch. He got up, and stepped on something squishy. He picked up a blanket from the floor and put it over Dan, who was breathing steadily through his mouth. He stopped for a moment to watch Dan breathe peacefully. He really was handsome, with a head of brown curls and tranquilly closed eyes with long brown lashes. A couple of minutes later, Phil realized that he was still watching Dan sleep. He had class! His phone was sitting on the floor in front of him, which he picked up. 

It was 8:20. Phil's eyes widened. He had missed the first twenty minutes of class! He ran to go get dressed, only to remember that he had fallen asleep fully clothed. What do I grab? Orange, Backpack! He slung it over his shoulder and grabbed both of his keys, locking the door behind him and sprinting across the hallway, down to his car.

Dan's dream changed suddenly, darastically. The sky overhead clouded over, a thick blanket of clouds flashing thunder and lightening. "You only have one day," said a cool female voice. He spun around, but he couldn't define its source. His feet sunk into the strange, spongiform landscape as he pivoted towards the sound. "You had better tell your friends to hurry up." He turned, looking down at the ground, and when he looked up again, he saw a giant, coiled black cobra with gray and rust colored moth wings fanning the air, emitting a hissing noise as it shifted and glinted when its scales caught the light. He shrank back from the dancing serpent, and it flicked its tongue in mirth. "Ha ha ha ha ha! You know, I think you've passed my test quite admirably-" The snake inched closer, flashing milky gums and pale fangs. "My first test." It pulled rolls of its sleek black body behind it and fanned its wings so hard, it tousled his hair. "You are going to need to consult with your friends, however, if you want to pass the second." He could reach out and touch its terrible face if he wanted to, and its tongue flashed inches from his face. "You have precisely sixteen hours and five minutes until I come. Everything must change then." The snake struck, its teeth inches from his face, nearly striking him. "Everything must change, because change drives the future. But the future is not mine," the snake said. It spat venom, and then spread its enormous wings and took to the sky, lightning striking right behind it as it left the ground. "Until then, I will be watching." Thunder rolled menacingly, and lightning struck the ground first meters, then yards, then centimeters from his foot with a tremendous, splitting roar. He jolted, sitting straight up on the couch, breathing heavily. 

He looked around. Phil was gone, he realized. He had just fallen asleep on the couch next to him last night. It was 9:23, and the curtains were still shut, blocking out the sunlight. The dream- he rubbed his eyes. The female voice had sounded just like Sheila, but somehow muffled. He wondered if somehow she had just been in the apartment. The dream from the other night- Sheila had been in that one, too. He rubbed his head out of habit. He was getting tired of having dreams about Sheila.

Then, he remembered something else, vaguely, from that morning. Phil... Had he really done that? Or was that just another wild dream? It couldn't have been; he woke up on the couch. Wait- he woke up laying laterally on the couch. He was sure he hadn't fallen asleep like that. And- he realized- he was covered in a blanket. That was definitely not there before. So... that had happened? He blushed furiously. Phil must have moved him when he woke up. What could he be thinking of him? He realized that he had told Phil the other night that he no longer liked Sheila. What if he started making assumptions? That isn't what he had meant! And Phil was taking care of him and had been so kind and considerate towards him. He covered his face with his hands. Why? Suddenly, something clicked in his head. I can just say that I like someone else in my class, he thought. How about Misty? Yes; she's a very lovely girl! And anyways, I'm straight. I'll just tell him that Ryan is gay, and he likes me, but I don't like him or something because I obviously can't. He bust out laughing at the thought, an he rolled around until his sides hurt. He thought of poor, clueless Ryan and the look on his face if he told Phil that in front of him. He wouldn't even understand what was happening! And anyways; it wasn't nice to out someone. Phil would definitely think less of him for that. Okay, scratch that. Think, think, think. Why did Dan feel like he was trying to make up a lie? Why was he trying to make up a lie about his friends? He couldn't do that with an easy conscience. But, then, how would he deal with- he cut off his thoughts. Just pretend like it never happened. But Phil would know it happened. He could think of no good excuse for literally sitting on top of Phil aside from impending zombie apocalypse or the occult mind-controlling him. He laughed aloud again to the empty apartment. Wait- Dreams! Duh. Dan had all sorts of wild dreams. One of them could easily have been him hugging a tree or something. He didn't remember all of that night's dream anyways  
That's a lie, nagged a voice.  
Well, it doesn't matter! Blurted another. It's to maintain dignity and respect.  
Yeah, respect, he supposed. Although, it was kinda weird to apply the whole respect-your-elders thing to a boy only four years older than himself.  
He thought of what Sheila had said when he asked her out. 

"Well then, aren't you ignorant?!" She had sneered.

 

He guessed that she was trying to tell him he wasn't giving her proper respect. He guessed he wasn't. She was, after all, a deal smarter than him and she had to be wiser, at least in some ways, living with the kind of person that she did but still maintaining a school career. She probably had been trying to teach him some profound message about how to live his life, but he honestly still had no idea what exactly that comprised. She would never talk to him long enough for him to find out. Sheila would probably tell him that he wasn't respectful enough towards Phil and that he was a better person than him or something. She was always nasty about the way she said it, but she was never wrong. 

He groaned, swinging his legs over the couch and reaching over to check his mother's phone. Maya had called twice last night at 10:00. Oops. Wait- what was she doing up that late anyways, trying to reach him? And why hadn't she called earlier? Guess it doesn't matter, he thought. All that mattered was how he proceeded from there. Then, he remembered what she had said. She met Sheila at his apartment yesterday. He shuddered thinking of bursting in on Sheila, just sitting there, waiting for him to fall into another trap. He decided it was probably a good time to call Maya and Ryan to tell them it would be fine if they came over that afternoon. He unlocked the phone and dialed her.

 

Ring. Ring. Ring. Ring

 

"Hello?" Answered a tired-sounding female voice. 

 

"Maya! It's Dan."

 

"I think I know what your voice sounds like by now, Dan," She replied. 

 

"You have no idea how glad I am to hear yours," Dan returned. "So... I'm sorry about last night. I was..." What was he doing that was more important than talking to his friends? All he had done was talk to Phil, and... Well, he had been tired. His pain medications were probably not helping him be less delirious or have normal dreams. She's probably wondering why I stopped talking. "I was explaining to Phil about Sheila and what we know about our situation."

"Okay, Dan," She returned, "But why didn't you call me? I was up half of the night waiting. You know you could have just talked to Phil while we were visiting."

 

Dan felt guilt overtake him. "I'm sorry I made you wait," he replied. "You sound really tired." 

 

"Yeah," Maya agreed. "I have a test coming up in AP Chem on Friday and another test in AP Literature. At this rate I don't know how I'm going to get all of the studying finished." 

 

"Well," Dan said, "I can't claim to be able to help you with that, but maybe Phil would know something about one of those classes. I'm sure he would be glad to help."

 

"Dan-" she said, sounding somewhat exasperated- "Look, it's not that you shouldn't trust Phil, but we still don't know if he is in on Sheila's plan. You trust too easily. I don't think he would hurt you, but as for being friends after this is over- don't get your hopes up." 

Dan felt his heart drop like a stone. He started to feel panicked. "Maya! You can't just say things like that about people you don't know. Phil wouldn't betray me or leave me. He told me that! And what if it never ends!?" Dan asked, his voice rising. "Maya, what if my parents are gone for months, or years, or the rest of my life!? Then what? What if Sheila decides that they aren't valuable to her alive, and-" He broke off, stifling a sob. 

 

"Oh, Dan, I'm sorry," Maya returned genuinely. "It's going to be okay. I promise to you that I will not stop until it is." She paused. "In the meanwhile, you really should go back to school if you are feeling well enough. You've missed two days of school already and it isn't like today is a holiday. I collected all of your missing assignments for you so far; I'll give them to you this afternoon. It's going to be okay, alright Dan? I'm going to help you, and Ryan is, too. We both really care about you."

 

"Thank you," he replied in a low voice. "You guys helping me means the world to me. I couldn't ask for better friends, there are none even if I searched all of the UK." 

 

Maya smiled. "Okay then, Dan, we will see you at about three o'clock this evening if that works for you."

 

"Yes, it does, he replied. And Phil will be there, too."

 

"Alright, Dan," Maya concluded. "We will see you there. We love you."

 

Dan stifled another sob. He didn't care that it was weird that his friend had told him she loved him like she was his and his best friend's child. He didn't care. "I love you guys, too," he responded. "Bye," he murmured.

 

"Bye," said Maya.

 

The call ended.

God, he messed that up. But he couldn't help feeling astounded at the kindness, caring, and moral integrity of his friends. There really was no replacement for them. Gosh, what would he do when Maya went off to college? Who would he talk to when Ryan left? He depended on Maya, he realized. She had taken care of him first as a classmate, and then as a friend- his newest best friend, but he felt like they had been friends forever. Ryan- he didn't let Dan forget a single practice, and always encouraged him and told him what he had learned that would help them both. Maya didn't let Dan forget anything, he thought. She had the memory of an elephant. Ryan was always by his side in school, practice, and whenever they hung out together, usually to practice forms and techniques. He really missed them, and he even missed school, despite the quirkiness of his Algebra teacher and his nagging AP Biology teacher. 

 

He sighed. It was still only 9:50; he had an entire day to spend by himself, immobile, waiting for Phil and his friends to return, and nothing to think about except for Sheila and his strange dreams about her. 

 

And Phil, said a voice in his head.  
What?  
You know that he is your, well, temporary boyfriend, right?  
Don't be ridiculous, he said to his thoughts. That's just something Sheila made up as an excuse to put me here with him.  
Couldn't she have said adoptive older brother? The voice asked.  
He laughed aloud.  
Adoptive older brother! Yeah, I just let this guy adopt my brother because he was better at taking care of him than me or my parents, he imagined Sheila saying to the nurse. It made about just as much sense as what she had told Phil about her being his girlfriend and then turned around and changed to sister. Nothing she did made sense.

 

It doesn't? Asked the voice. The story with Phil as your boyfriend at least made sense. She didn't care what Phil thought of lying to his face because she didn't need or probably even want Phil to believe what she said. She loved to make up lies and set them up so that they looked true, just for shock value, and make it so that the person who had been lied to looked crazy.

In a way, Phil had temporarily adopted him as a little brother, he supposed.

 

He imagined what would happen if his parents never returned and if Phil actually decided to take him in. Living together, as friends and adoptive brothers, for as long as Dan went to college and after that. His friends might visit him, and he might be taken care of, but...

 

Somehow, the thought made him cringe unhappily. To have to stay with Phil... forever... just, pretending to be his brother! It was almost unbearable to think of. 

 

He remembered that morning, curling into Phil's chest and falling asleep on top of him. He remembered sitting next to him the night before and remembered wishing that it could never end, because being next to Phil made him feel a thousand times stronger, braver, even though he knew he was physically weaker at the moment. He wanted to stay with Phil. He wanted to.

So why, then, would it be so awful to have him adopt him as a brother? He would feel trapped. Trapped? 

 

He thought about Ryan. Staying with him as his brother would be fitting enough. I mean, they weren't actually brothers, but they were close friends. He sighed. No, Ryan would get tired of living with Dan after a while. Him and his habits of waking up late and staying up late listening to terrible music from My Chemical Romance.  
What about Maya? She was the closest thing that he had to a big sister. Oh, wait, she's actually only about a month older than me, he thought. Surely Maya would be a great person to live with. She was so caring. Perhaps a little bit too caring. She might spend every moment that they were together drilling him on algebraic equations and reviewing past years' AP bio tests. He shuddered. Maybe he was just judging her too soon. She couldn't really be that bad about making him study constantly. 

 

But Phil- he didn't know how else to put it. He got along perfectly with Phil, like they were actually a couple or something.  
Well, Duh, said the same voice in his head.  
What did duh mean? He asked himself.  
Oh my gosh, Dan, you're bloody thick. Sheila set you two up as an actual couple, the voice responded, and so far she is succeeding!

His heart jumped in his throat as the realization hit him.

 

"You know, I think you've passed my test quite admirably!"

 

"Dan! That lovely boy over there fancies you quite keenly!"

 

Like a train, he was barreled over by the sudden storm of pieces that hadn't made sense before. 

 

"Oh, my dearest, where is your boyfriend? I thought he would be here."

 

"So.. Maya is, I mean, you fancy her?"

 

and finally, like a lead weight,

 

"In any case, I'm not letting you go back over to that apartment, so you might as well let the subject drop."

 

his heart stopped. Phil- actually cared about him. He had barely known Dan for a week and he... he was taking care of Dan like everything Sheila had said was true!

 

"I make truths; I am the god of them.  
And therefore, I am -your- god, because I am the god of liars."

 

his heart fluttered. It was just a dream. That was a dream! He was having a hard time telling his dreams apart from reality any more. 

He was feeling lightheaded. Dan stumbled into the kitchen and got a glass and filled it, hands shaking, drinking down the water and collapsing on the cold tile. Sheila told lies... she told lies and made them come true. She took the world around her and put it in a blender and mixed everything up, then poured it into little single-portion containers without any repercussions. She had literally turned Dan's world upside down, and now... he couldn't even trust his own mind or emotions to tell the truth. Everything he thought and felt was a lie, he was being manipulated, changed! Sheila was driving him crazy from the inside out.

 

His head was reeling. His skin was tingling. He couldn't process anything, so he stared at the tile, losing himself in its yellow ochre hue, letting his mind spin within its squared confines, as if it were a black hole, pulling him away from the world to a separate reality.

His world- a world he could understand; one of two dimensions. Flat. One color. Joonbi! Hana! Straight backwards, knifehand block. Duo! Pull back into a cat stance! Stay parallel to one plane of existence. Defensive front snap kick! Put distance between yourself and the enemy. Then return to a back stance with the opposite leg. Block your opponent's strike! Set! The same thing. Always keep your shoulders back and rigid, but relaxed. Block with power using your furthest hand! Move both hands as a unit! They are connected. Turn your far hand outwards at a 45 degree angle from your plane of vision. Block your face and head! Turn your nearest hand inward, palm facing up. Keep it close to your chest. Back leg should hold 80 percent of your body weight. Feel the gravity weigh you down. Now square your hips towards your imaginary opponent directly in front of you. Now draw that light-sitting front leg back, until just the ball of your foot is touching the ground and your front knee is bent prominently, almost all weight resting on the back leg. Now pull your knee up into chamber- keep your back straight- and kick your target as high as your own face in a mirror! Snap! Joonbi! 

Forms!  
Tae Guk One!

 

Hana- turn to the left 90 degrees counterclockwise and execute a low block with the left hand in a left walking stance. 

 

Dool- chamber your right hand as you step forward into a right walking stance and execute a middle punch.

 

Set- turn to the right by pivoting 180 degrees clockwise on your left foot, and execute a low block with your left hand.

 

Net- Chamber your left hand as you step forward into a left walking stance and execute a middle punch.

 

Order.

 

Da-sut- pivot on your right foot 90 degrees counterclockwise, stepping out into a traditional front stance as you execute a low block with your left forearm. Make sure your stance is wide; balanced. Stable. Then, chamber your right hand and execute a middle reverse punch with the right hand.

 

yeo-sut- Pivot on the left foot 90 degrees clockwise into a walking stance, executing a reverse middle block with the left forearm. (Push pull! Make sure you block your chest and not your face.)

 

il-gup- take a straight step forward still in a walking stance, chamber the right hand and execute a reverse middle punch with the right hand. (Punch your mirror reflection's chest!)

 

-durb- Pivot on the right foot 90 degrees counterclockwise in a walking stance, executing a reverse middle block with the right forearm.

 

ah-hop- take a straight step forward still in a walking stance, chamber the left hand and execute a reverse middle punch with the left hand.

 

Yeol- pivot on the right foot 90 degrees counterclockwise into a traditional left front stance and execute a low block with the left arm. Then, execute a reverse middle punch.

 

Hana- pivot on the left foot 90 degrees counterclockwise, facing your opponent with a rising block using your left forearm.

 

duel- Execute a front snap kick with the right leg and execute a right middle punch.

 

set- Pivot on the left foot 180 degrees and execute a high block with the right forearm.

 

net- Execute a front snap kick with the left leg and execute a left middle punch.

 

da-sut- pivot on your right foot 90 degrees clockwise and execute a low block with the right forearm in a traditional front stance.

 

yeo-sut- step forward, still in a traditional front stance, and execute a middle punch with the left hand and yell ki-hap.

 

Joonbi.

 

That was the form; the ancient philosophy of heaven and light. He could see himself execute every kick, gracefully block every punch. He was rigid, stoic, in control.

But the real world wasn't like that. The real world was a struggle; a chaos- a freestyle fight that Dan had to win by ordering what is given to him by chaos and fighting every enemy he had- both the ones that he could punch and the ones he could not. Tae kwon do helped him fight. It taught him to remain calm in a struggle, as calm and as intelligent in a fight as Maya.

 

That was what Tae Kwon Do did for him.

 

Everything that his master had told him cam flooding back. 'You are a red belt, now, Dan. Red symbolizes danger; you are both a serious danger to your opponent and yourself. You are your own greatest opponent. Do not let pride overtake you, and do not become lazy or be noncommital with your practice. Keep your guard up; you will need it much more than you will think. And always think in a fight; know how to respond instinctually, but learn how to think of the most effective technique quickly. Your strength is never your greatest asset- your mind is your greatest asset. Use it. Be clean with your technique and remember the concept of push-pull which should guide your actions. Don't face your opponent- change the angle in a fight and skirt his blows; move to the side. Remember Tae Guk five and be strong like the wind, but also as flexible and changeable. You will need to adapt in a fight to gain the upper hand. Don't let your guard fall when you tire. And above all, know that what you believe that you can do, you always will be able to achieve. Do you understand?'

 

Dan nodded. 

 

'Good. Now go meet your opponent! He is waiting.'

He breathed in. He breathed out. He pressed his palms into the tile. He rolled his left shoulder, and then slowly rolled his left, feeling his body contracting each muscle and pushing the blade into place, straightening the shoulder. 

 

Everything was still. He could feel his heart beating in his chest to a rhythm like a clock. He was more than a machine. He was a being with training from people, but agility from the wind, strength from the thunder, speed from the lightening, endurance from the sun, and inspiration from the heavens. His forms taught him each principle. His strength came from his heart; he had to be strong to be able to face those who were not. There was no place for cowardice in practicing Tae Kwon Do; only understanding of oneself, syncing mind and body and fluidly. Sheila trained. She shared the same dojang, was taught by the same master as him. She practiced the same forms, did basics the same way, but when she executed a form or threw a punch or snapped a kick, it was different. It would always be different because it came from a different place. Looking into Sheila's eyes when she kicked was like looking into the eyes of a panther snarling. Only in the eyes of a panther, there was no hatred. There was no fear, and there was no pain. All of these things fueled a fire so pallid it was nearly white which burned furiously in her eyes.

Dan didn't want to face Sheila with weakness; cowering in fear. She wouldn't be easy to reckon with. Even with all of his friends helping him and standing by his side, he would need all of his strength, every ounce of courage, and commitment. He would need, above all, to outsmart the fox. He knew he couldn't compete with her; there was no competition, but he knew that even the strongest fighters' strength could be used against them. It could be no different to engage in a battle of wit. He would need all of Maya's help. He would need Ryan's support and practicality. He, would need himself, the strong, brave, determined individual he knew himself capable of being. 

 

Dan drew himself up to his full height. He brought both hands into Joonbi position, balling his fists and stepping his feet shoulder width apart. Like the thunder, now his voice would resound. 

 

Knifehand block. Hana. Spearhand strike. Duo.

 

Moving swiftly, strongly, ferociously, Dan kicked with the utmost of control, but he punched without using power. On the last count, he yelled, KIAP! 

 

And Dan returned to Joonbi. 

'Howell! What gives you strength? No, it is not your mother, nor is it your father. It is not your best friend, it is not your girlfriend, it is not your Sa Bo Nihm. These people are here to help you, but they do not give you your strength. Understand? Your strength comes from understanding of what lies within yourself. Master yourself, Dan, and you will have mastered the most important aspect of Tae Kwon Do- self-discipline and self-respect.'

 

Dan sighed deeply, eyes still closed, and watched the back of his eyelids, feeling the pulse that fed them and pressing both feet firmly into the ground. Then, he released his position. Cho.

It was nearly one o'clock in the evening, Dan realized. He stood still for a moment and listened. Some scratching sound was coming from the floor right above him. On the floor above Phil's flat he heard a single note. Then, another, and another- long, unsteady, drawn out notes; it was an instrument. He heard a high, shill note pipe forth. It was a violin. Then, two notes played at once, and they arced back and forth from one side of the instrument's strings to the other. The sound suddenly stopped. There were a few footsteps which signified the changing of weight resting on a pair of feet, and then a series of notes bubbled forth, soaking the apartment above and leeching through to Dan where he stood. They cavorted and slid about, tumbling over one another with breathy, shrill voices as they danced. He wondered who could be playing; the music filled him with a sort of wonder he seldom felt. 

He looked about the flat. It was fairly clean, except for a jacket and a pair of basketball shorts slung over the chair in the far right corner of the room. The door to Phil's bedroom was standing open, a garment trailing out of it. The counters looked like they could be wiped down and the tiled floor mopped. He felt that he should at least contribute to bettering his shared lodgings if he were going to live without paying. Did Phil own a vacuum cleaner? That would be a good start once he picked up. Dan gathered Phil's dirty clothes into a lump and tossed them into the chair. He bent town and looked under the couches and table to see if there was anything that had been swept underneath. There were several things- a meter stick, a comb, a heavy gray metal ring, a couple of tarot cards, and a basic diving watch. Weird assortment of stuff, he thought to himself. He needed to find the vacuum cleaner. Where would a vacuum cleaner be? He hoped Phil had one as he had heavy shag carpet that needed to be cleaned. Let's see- ah! There was a small utility closet in the mini hallway across from Phil's room. Sure enough, a small, stout little vacuum cleaner rested against a water heater. He carefully pried it out and lifted it over to the carpet. He plugged it in and it roared to life. 

Dan went over the entire carpet, and then covered the kitchen floor. He wiped down the counters, but he couldn't find a mop to wash the floor, so he just used a dirty rag he had found hanging off of a protruding pipe in the utility closet to wipe it down as well. When he was finished, he stood back to examine his work. Much better. Now- if he could open the window- he pushed the dusty, faded yellow curtains to the side and slid the window open. He was slightly startled to find that he could step out of the window onto a little porch overlooking the street, facing a quaint suburban neighborhood. He sat down on a metal and plastic outdoor chair. Something had been left on the table. It was a laminated bookmark which read,

 

"I sing of you, I read of you,  
when I was young, I dreamed of you  
and all the stars would twinkle bright  
and like a child I'd wait for morning light

 

until the day came I was old  
and cast away my wistful hopes  
to find a comfort through and through;  
for when I was old, I rested upon you."

He wondered who had given it to Phil. It didn't seem like the kind of thing Phil would acquire himself. It looked like it had been left in the sun and rained on a couple of times. He wondered if Phil ever even went out here at all. He rested his chin in the crook of his arm, and reposed for a moment in silence.

 

Cars went by, an airplane soared overhead in the distance. He could hear a lady talking to her husband as she strolled down the street, and a crazy man talking to the passerby. It was funny how much one could hear when they actually stopped to listen. He pressed his ear to the glass table, and he could feel the muted vibrations of the building itself. Dan got up, stretching his arms delicately and his legs. He wanted to get back to his phone. Maya must have called by now.

He heard a door open, and Phil's voice as he entered the flat. "Hey Dan!" Pause. "Dan?" "I'm out here," Dan called. There was silence. Then, Phil's footsteps. He slid past the door and walked out onto the porch. "Dan!" Phil exclaimed in surprise. "What are you doing out here?" "Well," Dan said, "I cleaned up your apartment and I thought that a spot of fresh air would help the place, but when I opened the window I discovered this little porch and I've just been sitting here, listening to cars go by and stuff." "Well.. Thank you," said Phil, taken by surprise. "Thank you, Dan. You didn't have to do that." "Anyways, is there some reason that I shouldn't be out here?" Dan asked, good-humoredly. "No, of course not!" Phil replied. "Whatever strikes your fancy." "When's the last time you sat out here? On your porch, I mean?" "I don't come out here too often, honestly," Phil replied. "I haven't cleaned out here or anything. Every now and then, when I have a group of friends over, I'll come out here." Dan nodded. He couldn't think of anything engaging to say at the moment; perhaps he had been drained of the energy from that morning. He absentmindedly wondered about the bookmark. "What's this?" he asked, picking it up. "That? Well, my ex girlfriend Bethany gave that to me." He looked slightly uncomfortable. "She wanted to keep it forever as a token of her love. Anyways, I promised her. I'm not exactly the romantic type if you couldn't already tell. I never really loved her, though; she kinda pressured me into staying at my house and everything." He sat down. Dan nodded, staring at the card. "Well, at least she was sane, I guess." He thought of what would have happened if Sheila had agreed to go out with him. First of all, he would have gotten a nasty shock when he met her boyfriend... Sheila the great! Sheila sheila sheila, that was all he ever thought about these days. His sense of normalcy had been thoroughly, almost surgically removed by that outside power, that natural disaster of a girl that was called Sheila. He wanted to sigh heavily, but he just sat there. He wanted- something, but he just couldn't put his finger on what it was; his emotional radar was static, numbed. He figured he probably overslept and was too tired to think straight anyways.

Phil thought that Dan looked rather out of it. Honestly, he couldn't blame the boy. He had experienced one hectic week so far, and it wasn't over yet. Still, Dan looked almost like he had just been run through the gamut of some other calamity. He stared ahead with a glazed look in his eyes. He cleaned my flat, Phil thought. He must really be missing routine and structure from his life. Wait- Dan was still in high school, so... he must have missed school for- what, three days now? "Dan," Phil said entreatingly, "You know you should probably get your missed work if you can and go to school tomorrow. I have a car; I can drive you over if you tell me the address. Also- did you take your pain meds this morning?" Dan looked up, focusing on Phil again. "What? Sorry, I was in a bit of a daze." "Your pain meds. Did you take them?" Dan shook his head. "Alright, then, I'll get them for you-" "No!" he said, snapping back to reality. "Wait," he continued, somewhat less boldly, "I can get them myself. I'm not an invalid, you know. You don't have to take care of me." "Oh- well, no, of course not," Phil stammered. "Right then! They are in the kitchen, on the counter. You know where the glasses are, I think? Kitchen cabinet next to the fridge." Dan got up and stumbled, grabbing the sliding glass door to prevent himself from falling. Phil looked on in concern. "I'm fine," he said. "Knees just gave out. They do that sometimes." "Okay," Phil called after him.

Something definitely wasn't right. Phil thought back to that morning. He had lost himself in conversation with Dan and the fallen asleep in place on the couch, right next to Dan- or so he had thought, but somehow Dan ended up wrapped around him like poison ivy on an oak tree. Then, shortly after, Phil had left.

 

What was wrong with Dan? It must have happened while he was gone. Maybe Sheila called? Or his friend Maya told him something having to do with his parents, presumably nothing good? He must miss his parents at least a little. 

 

Phil took out his phone, put in the password, and texted Thomas.

 

Hey. I think you should come over tonight at about 5:30 to study. Does that sound okay? I'm having guests over in about 20 minutes and I think they might be staying a while. 

He hoped that the physics exam would focus on what they had learned in class and practiced in the homework and not require Phil to put together a bunch of different things they had learned. He hated those composite problems; they always confused him and he would make stupid mistakes. He never knew how to practically approach a technical problem anyways. That reminded him... he hadn't posted a video in over a week! He hadn't even taken the time to film, he had been so busy with Uni work. He had let himself get lost in work again. With a sigh, he put his phone in his pocket, and looked out over the trees. Dan was right; it was peaceful to sit out on his porch and watch the wind tousle the trees. It wasn't too noisy, either. Phil thought to himself that the stars were probably gorgeous to look at from this place.

 

Meanwhile, inside, Dan grabbed a glass which was already sitting on the counter, popped the pill, and downed it. He choked, spluttering. It tasted terrible! Dan smelled alcohol spirits in the glass. "The hell, Phil?" he thought to himself. "Why is there a glass of vodka on the counter?" He went over to the refrigerator and poured a glass of water to wash it down. The taste of Vodka still lingered and it tasted bitter and terrible. 

Phil went back inside to see what Dan was doing. He had already taken his pill; a nearly empty glass sat on the counter next to the bottle of pills. Dan was slumped over in the couch, phone on and in his hand, but Dan wasn't doing anything with it.  
"Dan?" Phil inquired. 

 

Dan looked up. "What?"

 

"When did your friends say they would come?"

 

Dan looked weary. "2:30." 

 

"Alright. Well- it's two o'clock right now. You look tired. There's time for you to take a nap. If one of your friends calls, I'll answer and tell them you're asleep, okay?" 

Dan simply closed his eyes and nodded, shifting positions so that he was stretched out on the couch. Phil couldn't help but notice that he could count Dan's ribs through his T-shirt. That couldn't be good. Had he even eaten in the past six days? Phil felt his stomach drop. He hadn't been fixing Dan anything regularly. He only ever made Dan lunch once. It was a wonder Dan didn't vomit up his medicine. Phil felt terrible. Then again- he himself hadn't eaten much either as of recent. He only really ate lunch for the past two weeks at Uni, and he wondered at the fact that he was so bad at providing something as simple as food for.. Dan. Well, that made him a royal idiot and officially the worst provider. Jeez, what was he thinking, trying to care for Dan? He couldn't even care for himself! There had to be someone else that could do better than him, a cousin of Dan's or something. He wondered what would happen if he sent Dan to one of his relatives or his best friend's house. You can't take that chance, said the voice of caution. Do you really want to deal with Sheila's wrath or risk Dan getting caught by Charli? No; he didn't, and some selfish part of him didn't want Dan to leave for another reason- Dan was nice company. He made the routine and monotony of life interesting, to make a gross understatement, and finally, Phil had someone to talk to. Dan really listened to what Phil said, and he appreciated what he did to help him figure out what was going on. Phil wished Dan could stay.

Phil snuck a glance at him. His eyes were closed, and he was breathing evenly. Phil watched Dan's chest rise and fall, his eyelids stretched flat over his eyes, long lashes reaching past the bottom of his eye socket and his hair sticking out in dark chestnut ring-like curls which went in every direction. He watched his nostrils flare ever-so-slightly when he exhaled, and his pink lips which stayed still and calm as he breathed. Phil got a small shock when he saw Dan's eyes were open slightly. His irises rolled towards Phil, who held his breath. Dan gave him an inperceptibly slight smile. Did he really? It must have been Phil's imagination. Phil swore silently. Damn his imagination! As of late, it always came up with stupid shit like this. He felt a lump forming in his throat. OY! said a voice. You're far too tired right now. Stop staring at Dan and go organize your papers. Phil shuffled over to his bedroom. Before he could open the door, Dan called out to him.

"Phil?" 

 

He paused. "Yes, Dan?" 

 

Dan was silent for a minute. What was he going to say?

 

"I really like you, Phil." 

 

... "I like you, too, Dan. You're a good person." 

 

"That isn't what I meant."

 

Phil couldn't believe what he was hearing. "Come again?" He walked back over to the couch. Dan turned over and looked up at him. He swung his feet over the couch in slow motion, and stood up to face him. Phil just stared back at Dan, who looked at him with eyes half lidded, a small smile still gracing his lips. He tilted his head to the side ever so slightly as he reached up and touched the side of Phil's face. He started panicking. What do I do? What do I do? Said the voice in his head, over and over again. What do I do? Dan inched closer. "I really like you," Dan said, lips barely moving. Dan reached up, fingers tracing along his skin, and pushed his black fringe out of his eyes. "Your eyes look just like his eyes," he murmured. He turned his hand and ran his index finger, just barely touching, down Phil's face again. Phil felt chills run lightly down his sides. "I want to touch you." Dan put his hand on Phil's shoulder loosely. ...loosely? 

Suddenly, Phil remembered. Dan's medicine! He had been taking strong pain medications on an empty stomach. "Well, Dan," Phil responded, "That's nice. Could you sit tight and not touch me, though, while I make you lunch?"  
Good Phil, said a voice. Stay on task. Nothing else matters. He was shaking as  
he took hold of Dan's shoulders and led him back to the couch, pushing him back onto it. "Stay there," he commanded, not expecting Dan to follow orders but hoping that he would anyways.  
Phil swallowed the lump in his throat. Practicality. Phil was learning how to do this whole practical thing, finally. He figured he should be better at it than he was by now. He supposed he should be less hard on himself; everything had been thrown off track this week, even besides having Dan.  
Focus! Said the voice of practicality again. Dan needs food.  
He got out the cheese and some bagels. Lunchmeat, lunchmeat. Didn't he have any ham? He rifled through the bin of his refrigerator. Aha.

 

He took out some cold turkey and ham and a package of swiss cheese.  
He grabbed the box of spinach as well and the mustard and mayonnaise. Working quickly, he slapped together two sandwiches and put them both on paper plates. He got out baby carrots and put a handful on both plates. Crisps? Phil looked through the cupboard above. To his relief, there was a bag of potato crisps, which he opened and liberally dropped on their plates as well. Okay; done. He turned around and jumped. Dan was standing behind him. He put his hand on Phil's shoulder again and attempted to get closer, but he looked like he was going to fall backwards; his head tilted in the opposite direction of his body. and his steps wavered before they took his weight. Phil steadied him and reached his arm across Dan's shoulders and lead him over to the couch, sitting him down. Dan looked unresponsive. 

"Dan, can you hear me? Dan-" Phil set down his sandwich in front of him and sat down on the footrest in front of him. "Dan? Look at me." He was definitely not doing well, he thought to himself. Not well at all... Then, he saw a dark pair of eyes roll upwards. He lifted his head and Phil watched Dan slowly lift his head, holding Phil's gaze, and he reached out his hand to touch Phil again. Phil watched Dan blink and lick his lips. His eyes were large and dark like new moons. He could smell the lingering vestiges of cologne that Dan had worn weeks ago, the sour odor of vodka heavy on his breath, and every aspect of Dan’s face was evident in hyperreal closeness. Before Phil knew what was happening, Dan was inches from his face, warm breath blowing over his cheeks, and his left hand reached out and cupped Phil's jaw, drawing him in gently and clumsily and pushing his mouth over Phil's own. Phil stiffened in shock. Dan took his other hand and clasped Phil's face, getting up and leaning over him. He kissed Phil slowly, lowering himself into Phil's lap and wrapping both arms around Phil, grabbing his hands on the way there and pinning them behind Phil's back uselessly.  
There was simply no manual on how to deal with this situation.  
There was no wondering what it all could mean.  
Phil couldn't move, he couldn't breathe, and everything had come to a screeching halt.  
The wave of shock went through his entire body, leaving behind in its wake warmth and numbness. He was immobile.

 

What do I do? Said an intimidated voice.

 

I think you already know what to do, remarked another. 

 

Phil. Let go.

 

Part of him asked if this was right, and the other part, the instinctual one, said that this was what Dan really wanted beneath all of his reservations and layers of self-deception. Dan's finger tangled in a lock of his hair. Phil felt his fingers and toes tingling, his lungs welling with a breath of pleasure as a drowning man's fill with water as he dies.  
All of his internal voices had gone silent except for a single one, which hummed.  
Dan was delirious. Phil knew that, but he hesitatingly loosened his right hand, and cupped Dan's cheek. Phil kissed him back delicately, his heart thumping in an understated manner.  
He would regret this later.  
But right now- there was no explanation, no cause, no justification and no proof of what was happening right now. Right now, he would kiss Dan, practicality be damned, and deal with what came later.


	11. Him in the Evening, Her at Night

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is probably going to be one of the longest chapters yet... tons more plot. Have fun with this one, guys.

(Wednesday Evening, April 18)

Dan had finished half of his sandwich and was asleep on Phil's chest, curled up and leaning against him, and Phil had his arm draped around him. Phil didn't remember ever feeling like this. 

 

He had known a lot of people; he met many at Uni and in High school. He had traveled to Paris, Rome, Madrid, and visited America. He had four girlfriends in his time, two of which were serious, or so he thought, but nothing, no one, came close to giving him the feeling that he had right in that moment. Phil held Dan and looked down in amazement at the young countenance of Dan Howell asleep on his breast, his mouth turned upward in contentment. 

 

Unfortunately, Phil didn't have long to enjoy that moment, because just then, Dan's mother's cell phone rang loudly. Dan stirred. "Sit up," Phil said gently. He answered the phone.

 

"Hello?"

 

"Hello? Is this Phil? It's Maya. Ryan and I are on our way over. I'm sorry we're late. We will be there in 20 minutes."

 

Phil had nearly forgotten a second time. He scrambled mentally, sitting up and scooting a couple of inches away from Dan. "Okay," he replied. “Then… I'll be expecting you then."

 

There was a pause. "Is Dan there?"

 

"Yes- yes he is," Phil managed. "But he's a bit tired right now. I think his medicine made him rather delirious. I'm going to try and remedy that."

 

"What is he taking?" Maya asked.

 

Phil hesitated. I didn't check," he responded. "I think it's Ibuprofen."

 

"Can he not talk to me? Phil?" Maya asked dubiously.

 

"He can," Phil decided, "but I don't know how much you will be able to get out of him."

 

"Okay," said Maya. "Hand him the Phone."

 

Phil got up and handed the phone to Dan, who stared at it in confusion. 

 

Phil was beginning to get frightened. "Put it to your ear!" he exclaimed. 

 

Dan looked down at it, and then brought it up to his hear. "Hello?" He said.

 

"Dan! Are you alright? Phil told me that you were not feeling well. Do you need me to bring you anything?"

 

Dan pressed his hand to his forehead. "I'm not sure. Bismol." 

 

"Dan? Are you feeling alright?" 

Dan looked up at Phil. He sat back down on the couch next to him, and Dan leaned against him, laying his head on Phil's shoulder. "Phil is alright," he responded, yawning. "He's lovely. Love him."

 

Now Maya sounded concerned. "Dan- eat something right now, okay? EAT. Food. Give the PHONE to Phil, okay?" Dan rolled his eyes over to Phil, handing him the phone. Phil put it between his shoulder and his ear and picked up Dan's sandwich with his other hand. 

 

"Hello? Maya?" He said, offering Dan a bite of the sandwich. He opened his mouth and attempted to take a bite. He managed to take one, chewing slowly and staring into space.

 

"Yes Phil. Listen- I want you to give me a sample of the medication that Dan is taking; one pill should be fine. My mother actually works as a nurse in the Pharmaceutical department of River Banks hospital. I'm going to have her identify the drug Dan is taking. Until then- DO NOT give him any more, okay? If you have over-the-counter aspirin or ibuprophen at your house, give him the appropriate dosage of that instead. If you don't have any, well, just tell me now and I'll stop by the drugstore and get some."

 

"Okay," said Phil, "But why is that necessary?" 

Maya sighed impatiently. "Phil, do you know what is in those pills that you are giving Dan? I mean- do you really know, or are you relying on the accuracy of the label?"

 

"..no."

 

"Well then, that settles it, doesn't it? If Dan is acting strangely after you give him the medicine, chances are it isn't just ibuprofen. Pain medication doesn't usually cause disorientation or incoherence. Hopefully, it isn't anything very dangerous, but there is a great deal of reason for concern. Get him to eat, okay? Make him eat everything that you give him, Phil, this is very important." Phil heard a turning of pages. "Go check right now and see if you have any ibuprofen." 

 

"Okay," Phil replied. He went over to his bathroom and looked through his medicine cabinet. He had a bottle of aspirin, but there were only three pills left in the bottle. Was that it? Band-aids, cotton swabs, an emory board, hydrogen peroxide, and a bottle of Vodka. He noticed that he had some Pepto Bismol. "Hey Maya, you still there?"

 

"Yes," she replied, sounding remarkably young. 

 

"I need for you to pick up some ibuprofen or aspirin. I don't have enough left."

 

"Okay; I'm on it," She responded. "Now- go get Dan to eat! I'll be there soon. Bye." She hung up.

 

Phil turned back towards Dan, who was still reclining drowsily on the sofa. "Phil," he cooed. 

 

"Dan-" Phil grabbed Dan's wrist and pulled him up, still holding on to maintain his attention. "I need you to eat this, okay? Maya told me that you needed to eat."

 

Dan nodded and Phil brought the sandwich to his lips. He took another bite, chewing slowly. This is going to take forever, Phil thought. Come on, Dan. "Here, take another bite," Phil said, pressing the sandwich to his lips without waiting for him to open his mouth.

 

Phil stopped when he had fed Dan the entire sandwich. Dan groaned, and put his hand on his forehead. He leaned back on the couch, wincing in pain. How could Phil not have noticed that the medicine was causing strange side effects? Idiot! and Phil had kissed him- he thought, fear and guilt beginning to well within him. Phil had kissed Dan while he was delirious. What would Maya think if Dan let that slip? She would think that he was drugging Dan! He fervently hoped that Dan would come around quickly. But what if he didn't? Maya would take Dan and Phil would never see him again. 

 

He couldn't process that right now. He focused on bringing Dan a glass of water and then bring out a cold cloth to press against his forehead, hoping it would help wake him up.

 

Before he even could try to plan a way to make Dan keep quiet and off of him for the duration of Maya and Ryan's visit, there was a knock at his flat door. Phil walked over and unlocked it, and Maya and Ryan came in. 

 

"Phil," said Maya, extending her hand. "Nice to meet you in person. Maya Rallson." He shook it. 

 

Ryan walked over, looking obviously fatigued. "Ryan Starling, Dan's best friend," he said. "Pleasure to meet you. Wish it wasn't under such circumstances." 

 

"Please, sit down," he said, motioning towards a couple of chairs he had dragged from his porch into his small living room. Maya sat down next to Dan as he had hoped, leaving him a chair beside Ryan.

 

Maya took Dan's hand in her own and squeezed it. Dan opened is eyes. "Maya?" he questioned. "What are you doing here?"

 

"We came to visit you. I called the other day, remember? You said we could come over yesterday night, but it didn't work out."

 

Dan looked at Maya. "Vaguely," he responded. "You... you called, I think." 

 

Maya nodded, turning to Phil in concern. "How long has he been like this?"

 

"I think he started getting really bad after he took this evening's dose of painkiller," Phil responded. 

 

"Does he forget things? Like, little things, or big things? And how much does he still remember about what happened after the fight?"

 

Phil shrugged. "He didn't remember anything from the hospital. Apparently the doctors gave him high dosages of Morphine."

 

"Morphine? No, that doesn't sound right; Opioids don't cause amnesia. Tell me every symptom that Dan's had over the past week, if you can."

 

Phil nodded slowly. "Well, he came home- I mean here, from the hospital at noon Saturday. He woke up in the hospital and told me a bunch of things he didn't remember. Then-"

 

"What did he say?" Maya asked. "Did it have anything to do with Sheila?"

 

"Well," Phil stumbled, "He said that Sheila wasn't his girlfriend, and asked me where his parents were and then passed out. He... kinda yelled at me." 

 

"Was he mad?"

 

"Mad? Dan? Oh, no, he was just confused."

 

"What did he tell you in his confusion? Is it anything important? Does he know anything about... no, well never mind. I don't suppose he does." She looked over at Dan, who, to Phil's relief, was asleep on the couch, slumped over uncomfortably. 

 

"Okay," she said. "So... anything else weird that he did? I mean, something you don't think he would normally do, like waking up at two AM and pacing or something."

 

"He compulsively cleaned my entire flat this evening," Phil responded. "I also don't think he normally acts this... clingy and tired." 

 

Maya cocked her head, looking up at Phil from Ryan's iPhone. "Clingy?" 

 

"Yeah, well... he's just... kinda been wanting me around all of the time and stuff." It wasn't exactly a lie, Phil thought to himself, it just wasn't the whole truth. He didn't have to tell Maya the clingy part was literal. 

 

"Okay," said Maya. "I would guess he misses his parents, so he projects that onto you when he's delirious." She looked up at him. "I tried to call both of Dan's parents several times, but neither picked up. There is one missed call, but it's from before the incident took place." 

 

"Does Dan have Sheila's number?"

 

"He does, but do we really want to call her? We should probably do that as a last resort; it would cause more trouble than it's worth."

 

Ryan was listening to Maya speak with a grim countenance, reposing on the chair. "Maya," he commented, "Tell him what you know about Sheila. So far. What we found out." Maya nodded.

 

"Sheila Lasher, age 17 and 3/4, blond hair, blue eyes, six foot two, is legally an orphan in the unofficial care of her boyfriend Charli; we don't know his last name. She is a red belt in the Kukkiwon Tae Kwon Do school and she is soon to earn her brown belt. She began practicing Tae Kwon Do two years ago, in the tenth grade. Her boyfriend, as I understand it, is a drug lord and a gang leader who uses her to strategize his sales and kill individuals that are a threat to his monopoly. Ryan, Dan and I know her from Tae Kwon Do. She's quite a talented fighter, but she's remorseless to the point of cruelty when she spars, so Master Tom doesn't let her compete most of the time. We don't know much else about her; she's rather mysterious."

 

What about her personality? He thought. That would give us a clue as to what she might do, at least. But before he could ask anything, he noticed that Dan was stirring in his sleep. Don't wake up, Phil wished silently. His left eye opened to a slit, and he smiled at Phil. Well crap. 

 

"Uh, Maya!" Phil said hurriedly. "Do you know anything else about.. well about Sheila's boyfriend? Won't he kill Dan if he can?" He hoped that would distract her. He looked at Dan to see if he looked concerned and afraid. Unfortunately, his question had the opposite effect on Dan. He got up, his knees giving out under his weight, and stumbled right over to Phil and sat down on his lap. Shit! He thought. Now what?  
"Hey Phil," Dan murmured. 

 

Maya frowned. "Dan, what are you doing? Get off of Phil, he doesn't want you on top of him. He's not your mother. Come on, Dan. Come sit by me."

 

Dan smirked. "No," he said. Then, he turned towards Phil and wrapped his arms around his neck and kissed him. Maya's eyes widened in surprise. Phil couldn't see Maya, but he was pretty sure she was shocked. Phil tried to push him away, but he stubbornly refused. He wanted to kiss Dan back, but that wasn't right. Dan was not in his right mind, and if Maya saw him kissing Dan in return, it would be all over. Finally, Dan pulled away, looking straight into Phil's eyes. Phil's mouth opened, trembling. It was too late. It had happened. 

 

"Phil- has he done this before?" Maya managed after a minute, eyes still wide. 

 

"Of course," Dan interrupted. "He loves me; I'm his boyfriend."

 

"Dan, that was a lie that Sheila told to get you somewhere she wanted you!"

 

He rounded on Phil. Somehow, he looked less certain than he had before. "You do care about me, don't you, Phil?" He stared pleadingly into Phil's eyes. "I-" His response caught in his throat. Dan definitely did not look okay. What if he said no? "Of course I care about you," he admitted. Dan leaned forward, slowly this time, and kissed Phil, melting his inhibitions, and he tilted his head and kissed Dan in response. They broke away after a few seconds, and Phil looked towards Maya, afraid. If she is homophobic... 

 

Maya stared, mouth hanging open, phone suspended in her hand. Ryan was staring at Dan like he was a stranger who had just burst into the living room unannounced. 

 

"Dan," she said, a peculiar tone in her voice, "Dan- I want you to come with me." Dan looked at her confusedly. "What? Maya-" "NOW!" She exclaimed. She grabbed Dan's arm and motioned for Ryan to follow. "Wait!" Dan said. "Why can't Phil come?" "Dan," she responded, "Listen to me. You aren't in your right mind." She looked at Phil. "I'm taking him to the hospital," she said simply. "Thank you for everything you've done." And before Phil could do anything to stop her, she had slammed the door behind her.  
\--

Ryan got into the car and started the engine. "Where is the hospital?" 

 

"Fourteenth street. Go to River Banks; that's where my mom works. We're getting this tested," she said, holding up a plastic baggie containing the container of pills that Dan had been taking. "Go, go go!"

 

Ryan swerved out of the parking lot, pulling out onto into the road. He hit the accelerator, reaching 60. 

 

"You take him to the ER. I'm going to go get my mom to test the pills." 

 

When they arrived at the Hospital, Dan looked afraid. "My head hurts," he complained. His breathing was slow and labored, and he leaned against Ryan for support. "Dan! Go with Ryan," she told him. Maya sprinted across the parking lot, leaving them in the dust. "GO!" she yelled over her shoulder at Ryan.

 

She sprinted up to the doors and opened them, panting. 

 

"Do you know where Elisa Rallson is right now?" she asked the lady at the front desk. "She's my mother and I really need to talk to her. It's an emergency." She nodded and said,

 

"She's at window four right now. Take this visitor's tag." Maya scribbled her name and slapped it onto her chest, not bothering to recap the pen. She sprinted right up to her mother's window and called loudly. "MOM!" 

 

A tall, dark-haired woman who shared Maya's brown complexion and plainly structured but handsome face walked over, holding a bottle of pills in one hand and labels in the other. "Yes Maya?" she asked with a tinge of concern. 

 

"Mom! I really need your help with something. Specifically- this." She held up a bottle of pills which were labelled ibuprofen. "My friend Dan- he's in the ER right now, he took these, but I don't think they are ibuprofen," she said anxiously. "I don't know how it happened! He was delirious, and he cleaned the entire flat of this boy named Phil. He was acting really strange! He kissed the boy-"

 

"Whoa, slow down, Maya," she said. "Hand me the pills, and I can identify them. You can tell me what happened while I work on it." Maya gulped and nodded, handing her the bag. Her mother removed the pills from the bag and shook one into her palm. She frowned. "Hm. These are capsules, not prescription ibuprofen." She opened one of the capsules and poured out a fine white powder. She went back behind the rows of medicine and Maya heard the sound of running water. She came back with a small plastic beaker. She poured the powder into it and stirred it with a metal rod and it dissolved. "Interesting," she remarked, "soluble in water." She took out a couple of colored strips and put them both in the beaker. One of them began to slowly change color. "Acidic," she said. 

 

Maya watched anxiously. "Dan, the boy who took this, was acting very strange. He didn't remember much about a call that I had made earlier that day. He had poor coordination and seemed really tired. Also-" She looked at her mom. "he did something really unlike him. He kissed the boy that was taking care of him." 

 

She looked up. "What, sorry." 

 

Maya sighed. "Well, his parents are out of town, on call for their jobs, and so they left him with a friend of a friend's son," she lied, "and he kissed him and acted like they were dating or something. He's only known this boy for under a week!" 

 

"That is strange," she remarked. "What were his other symptoms again?"

 

"Poor coordination, um, tiredness, disorientation, and amnesia?" 

 

Maya's mother shook her head. "That doesn't sound good," she remarked. "Not good at all for your friend." 

 

Maya looked up pleadingly at her. "It's Dan, you know Dan, right? From Tae Kwon Do?" 

 

She shook her head. "The name does sound familiar, though. I don't believe I've ever met him. Do you two hang out a lot?" 

 

She nodded. "I really like him. He's so nice to me and we practice forms after school and stuff. Recently, though, he hasn't been well enough to come. He broke his collarbone."

 

"Well," she said, "Let's worry about that later and see what exactly he has been taking. I have my suspicions, but I can't be sure until the chemistry department runs it through. Also, I'm going to see if I can get a urine sample. That will tell us exactly how much of it is in his system."

 

"What is it?" Maya begged.

 

Ms. Rallson shook her head with a sigh. "I'm sorry to say that it's probably a date-rape drug called GHB, which can be home-produced using paint stripper or superglue remover mixed with lye, that is, GBL and a solution of sodium hydroxide. That is using your descriptions as key evidence, however. To be positive, we would need the chemical tests."

 

Maya's eyes widened. "You mean-"

 

Ms. Rallson pursed her lips. "Whomever is taking care of Dan probably made this and gave it to him in place of ibuprophen. It's a wonder the poor boy isn't in constant agonizing pain, on top of being completely out-of-it."

 

But Maya was too startled to answer. 

 

"I'm going to test some of the other pills to see if they are all the same," she continued. "I'll let you know when I'm done, you should go visit your friend. I'll try to get-" but, as she looked up, she realized that Maya was already gone. 

 

Maya raced across the hospital to the ER and burst through the doors. "Where's.. Daniel Howell?" She panted. "I... brought him. I'm his sister," She lied. The accountant gave her a skeptical look. "You are his sister? I'm going to need proof of identification."   
Without thinking or turning back, she bolted through a second set of doors. "HEY!" She heard behind her. 

 

"RYAN!" she yelled. "RYAN WHERE ARE YOU? RYAN!" she heard him call one hallway away. Maya bolted to the room where Ryan was calling her and threw the curtain aside. "Dan!" she exclaimed breathlessly. He was lying on the hospital bed, hooked up to a monitor, and nurses were bustling about. His eyes were closed. "Dan!" She shook him. One of the nurses pushed her away. "Ryan!" She yelled, panting. "It was Phil, he drugged Dan! The pills aren't ibuprophen, they're a date rape drug! He's part of Sheila's plan; he must be! Ryan he's using Dan and torturing him by not giving him ibuprophen! He's Dangerous! DAN!" She screeched as they forcibly removed her from the room and shut the door. 

 

Dan was laying on the table, presumably unconscious. "He's gone into respiratory arrest!" Shouted one of the nurses. "Put him on the ventilator right now!" 

 

"I need a vial of his blood to test." 

 

"His pulse is dropping! Hurry it up!"

 

Ryan looked on helplessly as the nurses and doctors bustled about. His best friend wasn't breathing and had just overdosed on drugs... by accident. Somehow he wasn't getting ibuprophen but something else. He couldn't believe everything he had just witnessed. Any more, he didn't know what to believe, he just hoped Dan would be alright. Then, one of the nurses came up to him. "I'm sorry to have to do this," he said, "but I have to ask you to leave the room. You can sit in the waiting room and we will keep you updated." Ryan nodded silently and walked out. He sat down in the waiting room shakily, right next to Maya. She was sobbing, and she looked up at him with a tear-stained face. 

 

"How is he?" She asked anxiously. Ryan was reluctant to answer.

 

"The nurses are hooking him up to a respirator," he said, watching the disastrous results of his simple comment unfold wearily. She gave a cry of surprise and anguish.

 

"NO! She wailed. No, no NO! Dan! Ryan-" she broke off. "He has to live, oh my god! What do I do? Ryan HELP!" She got up and ran back to where Dan was laying, Ryan chasing after her. They ignored the nurse calling them.

 

Dan was hooked up to the respirator, his pulse beating steadily as his chest rose and fell wit the aid of the machine. Upon the sight of him, she buried her face in Ryan's shoulder and cried.

 

"Ryan-" she choked out in a low voice, "What are we going to do? What's going to happen to him?" She wiped her face roughly with the back of her hand, and leaned onto Ryan's shoulder. "We h-have to save him," she cried. "We can't just let Sheila destroy him!" Ryan put his arm around her.

 

"I don't know what to do," he said quietly, "but we are going to help Dan. Dan is not going to die because of Sheila. We won't let that happen." 

 

She shook her head fervently. "H-he isn't safe! My p-plan failed! Sheil-la has him in w- with some sicko!" she choked. "Why would he do that?" she begged between sobs. "Why would he lie to us? How could he do this to Dan? S-she's awful! Ryan! She's awful!" 

 

"There, Maya please don't cry," Ryan said, patting her. "None of this is your fault. We didn't know- well, it isn't important now. We just have to keep trying." He patted her, sighing. "You're one of the smartest people I know," he informed her. "You figured out so much already! I don't know anyone in our entire school that could have done a better job." She looked up at him.

 

"Y-you really think that?" He nodded, giving her a small smile. She wrapped her arms around him and leaned her head into his side. "Thank you," she whispered. "I- I hate this. I hate feeling responsible and in control and then failing because I wanted to believe the best of someone." She stared ahead. "I just don't understand," she said. Ryan gave her hand an encouraging squeeze, but said nothing. Then, he had an idea. 

 

"You should go and see your mom," he suggested. "She is probably waiting for you." 

 

Maya nodded and got up. "That's a good idea." She dried her eyes with her sleeve. "Thanks, Ryan. I'll be back." He nodded. 

 

Maya marched up to her mother's window. "Mom?" She asked, hoping she hadn't already gone home. 

 

Ms. Rallson came out from behind the rows of medicine, carrying two more small beakers. "Maya," she said. "What's wrong?"

 

"Dan stopped breathing," she said, her eyes welling with tears. 

 

Her mother's eyes widened. "He isn't breathing? That isn't good. The sooner they get him on a respirator, the better. Then, he should be alright, as soon as the drug wears out of his system." She tapped on the little plastic vial. "They were all the same thing, except several of them contained a small amount of insoluble material, which could be ibuprophen. I'm running it through tests right now. GHB is a depressant. If Dan is unconscious and no longer breathing, that sounds like it was mixed with alcohol, never a good combination." She shook her head. "Lucky this is a low dose of the substance or he might have been in serious trouble. But if he took one of these-" she said, holding up the small pill, "and, say a drink of alcohol, he should recover without damage done. Let's just hope he didn't consume very much."

 

Maya shook her head, a single tear rolling down her face. "But I don't understand," she whispered. 

 

"Oh, Maya, don't cry," her mother pleaded. "It's going to be alright. I got a vial of his blood. It's being tested as we speak, and the pills are also being tested. Your friend is going to be just fine," she said. "I will make sure the boy has a place to stay if he needs one as soon as he gets out of the hospital. He can stay with us." 

 

"In the guest bedroom?" she asked. "It's cold in there. No," she decided. "I think he should stay in Bryan's room."

 

Her mother stood paralyzed. "Maya," she said, pain in her voice, "Don't." 

 

"NO!" She yelled. "I won't stop! I won't drop the subject, Mom! It's ridiculous!" she exclaimed, fist clenched, tears rolling down her cheek. "He's been gone for a year and all you think about is yourself! Preserving his memory! Acting like it never happened! Well, IT DID HAPPEN! And cryi-"

 

"THAT'S ENOUGH!" Thundered Ms. Rallson. "When I tell you no, Maya, you'd better listen to me!" The tone in her voice was foreboding.

 

Maya swallowed, looking at her mother in disbelief. "I can't believe your selfishness," she said, speaking just above a whisper. She paced like a nervous panther. "I love Dan, mother. I've only really known him for two months, but it feels like we've known each other forever. He's- he's like a brother to me! I adore him! Please-" she whispered, "I CAN'T lose him!" And with those words, she dissolved into tears once again. 

 

Maya's mother opened her mouth in anger, but at her daughter's last words, her face contorted and she covered it, turning so that Maya couldn't see her. She heard long, pained sobs, and saw her mother's shoulders bent over. She knelt to the ground and cried mournfully, hand plastered out in front of her.

 

Maya stopped crying when she heard her mother's unfettered sobs. "Mom," she whispered. "Mom. It's going to be alright." But her mother didn't answer. The clinic was empty except for the accountant, the nurses, and doctors; no sound except for her sobs greeted the hospital that night at the pharmacy as her mother cried. One man with a cough hobbled out at eleven, but everything else was so, so quiet. It was a nighttime that one could get lost in.  
\--

Phil sat on the same couch that Dan had occupied only moments ago, staring at the empty chairs. It had happened because of his stupidity. He had lost Dan, and Dan's friends would never believe anything he said. It was doubtful that Dan would even remember kissing him. Dan would probably be just like the last time that he came out of the hospital- disoriented, completely ignorant of his situation, and estranged from his parents. Would Dan even remember him at all? 

 

Phil tried to think of something to do, anything that would change their minds, that would get Dan back, but honestly he couldn't even think of a valid excuse to want Dan back in the first place. He was never supposed to be at his house; Sheila had just thrown him in with the first unfortunate that cared enough about him to not want him to sit in a hospital all alone, being treated like an invalid for weeks or even months. Now- what evidence was there against Phil doing it all? He would be convicted of a serious crime. The worst part was that it all could have been prevented if Phil hadn't been so careless. If Phil had checked the pills, if he had just decided to give him some over-the-counter ibuprophen instead- but he hadn't. He sat with his head in his hands, watching the clock as it struck midnight. There was silence throughout his flat.

 

Then, he heard something hit the door- hard, and very quickly. He jumped about a foot and turned towards the door in terror. Then, there was a tousling of keys. Mom? he thought frantically. The door swung open, and before he knew what was happening, a six foot tall blonde was standing in his living room, twirling a twinkling set of keys. It was Sheila.

 

"Cheerio, Darling," She greeted him. "Your boyfriend didn't tell you about his nightmare. Disappointing. Well, I don't know what I was expecting." She looked down at him. 

 

He looked petrified. "Y-YOU!"

 

"Oh, don't tell me you've -forgotten- me already, Phil." Her stare pierced him. "I told Dan I would be back today," she continued casually, pacing leisurely about his apartment. "What happened? He got delirious, didn't he? And, you kissed him. Ohh, what a shame. You took advantage of him while he was out of it, didn't you?" Phil shook his head, eyes wide. 

 

"No- NO! I didn't! I took care of him just like you told me! I didn't touch Dan! Well," he broke her gaze, "I kissed him. I just thought-" he broke off, looking up at her. 

 

"You're terrified, aren't you?" She questioned. "Not just of me, no, you are terrified of something else, something you can't control." She laughed mercilessly. "You- you feel love for him. You are one of the people that can feel it, one of the vulnerable beings controlled by an instinct to care about, to protect, and to stand beside another. So many," she continued, staring ahead as though she were rehearsing a soliloquy, "So many people can feel it. People young and old feel it, all nationalities, faiths and races must reckon with it. Wars are waged because of it, blood is spilt over it until people wonder why they went to war over a thing that begged for peace. Friends and family are brought together because of it and strengthened by its force, especially in times of trouble. It is the most clique aspect of our culture, subject to use and overuse until it should make one sick with its commonness, but-" she said, "it remains one of the last understood and most cogent forces in our world despite that, and even the poor shadow of a suggestion of it holds strange power over us. People look for love when they cannot find it, instinctively searching for something they think they need. Some practically breathe it when they find that one person, their soul mate, as it is called. They spend their entire lives being damaged by others and searching and searching like lost ghosts just for a chance of meeting theirs.You are in the infinitely fortunate position of having found yours when you are young. Yours happens to be a boy, one younger than you, and one in an extraordinary situation where he needs you very much, and-" she said, looking into his eyes, "You need him, whether or not you know it or acknowledge it."

 

"Who are you to tell me what I need?" he demanded. "You can't do this to him! He- he isn't your toy to throw about! And why do you keep insisting that he's my boyfriend?! You don't even know me! You can't just drop some stranger into my home and tell me to take care of him! You can't tell me what I am and what I'm not! I'm not even gay!!" he said breathily, panic rising as she strode towards him. Sheila reached out her hand. She was just as tall as him, and as strong as a horse. She grabbed his chin and tilted it upwards. "Say that again," she said, "and look me straight in the eye. Tell me that Dan, the boy you kissed, the only person who has ever made you feel that way- so alive, so happy- the one you took care of, the one who hugged you when you refused to put him in harms way- tell me you don't love him. Tell me you don't want to wake up with him by your side every night, to look at the stars above with him until you both get tired, to talk with him about silly things and serious things, too. Tell me you never wanted him in the first place and that you don't want him back more than you've ever wanted anything. Go ahead- tell me that." She yanked his chin up further to meet her gaze. "I'm listening." Phil trembled as he looked into her eyes. He couldn't hold her gaze.

 

"Please," he said softly, "I- I just want him back. Tease me all you want, just help me get him back." Sheila's peals of laughter echoed through the apartment, loud enough to wake up the neighbors. He clasped a hand over her mouth. "Sssh, you'll wake up-" Sheila slapped him so hard across the face that he was thrown onto the floor. He sprung up and swung a punch at her, but she dodged it like lightening and had his hand behind his back in a joint lock before a candle would go out when blown. He cried out as she brought it further and further in. He dropped all of his weight backwards onto her, but she leapt over him and brought him down with a crescent kick just hard enough to bruise him badly. He looked up and she was gone. He spun around. She was standing on top of the table on the other side of the room, teeth bared. 

 

"Don't fuck with me, Lester," she snarled. "You'll lose." She descended, catlike, fire  
burning in her eyes. "I won't damage you," she remarked, "but if you do anything that betrays you to be- less than the person I thought you were- I'll kill you." If anyone else had told him that, Phil would be trying to disable them until he could call the police, but he had a feeling that she meant it. Sobered, he watched her in silence. "Sit down," she commanded. He sat. "You made it to round two," she said menacingly. She wrapped her cold fingers around his neck and pressed them in. "But you're caught in a noose. The more you struggle-" she pressed harder- "the tighter it gets." She released her hold on Phil's neck. "You're going to need to think- a lot." She circled him. "I will give you the first clue. Start at the school. Dan will tell you the rest." She walked towards the door.

 

"Well, it's been a great visit, but I really must go. I have quite a bit of business to attend to- and let's just say it's a matter of life and death. I wonder if it would be exaggerating too much, to even say that the fate of mankind depends upon it? I suppose not. Anyways, until next time, Lester." And with those words, she slammed the door shut.  
\--

Sheila slammed the door to Phil's apartment and descended the stairs. No one knew how to deal with her. It was just sad, in the end, how they let their emotions take control of them. No one could think clearly as soon as she threw something important out of whack, but Lester would make it. She knew that he would. He had something that the others didn't: a reason to fight against her and enough ignorance to do so. As for that Maya- well, she was being somewhat disappointing at the moment, but she would come around as soon as Dan recovered. 

 

Band together, she thought. I have driven them apart and there is one thing they must do. They must find each other, see that the evidence in this case does not match up. Gangs never stayed together. In the end, she split them up and killed them all, or forced them to join Charli. But these four, vulnerable people, the ones who think they are so thoroughly good and just when my cause is anything but- they will need to deal with the contentions that pressing situations create. Then, and only then, will they see how strong they are.

 

Dan. She imagined the kind, frail body, being worked by a respirator as he awaited recovery. This was their darkest hour, and they would need to figure out that Phil was on their side. It was only a matter of time. 

 

Her footsteps echoed down the empty hallway. Back to work.  
\--

Phil refused to give up so easily. He couldn't. He wouldn't. There had to be a way to convince Maya and Ryan to let him help. Sheila practically told him that he would be needed. He got into his car and started the engine.

 

Why are you doing this? asked a voice. 

 

I'll go to jail if I can't convince them that I did nothing wrong, said an unpleasant voice.  
Sheila will frame me unless I can avoid it. She has no mercy. 

 

No, he said. That isn't why. I love Dan, he thought. I must be crazy! Sheila's getting to my head. But I don't want him to be run through this crazy girl's maze all alone. His parents aren't there for him, but it seems like they never really were. So here I am, driving in the dark, searching for a person whom I don't know that well and whom has no guarantee of remembering me at all. Why am I doing this?

 

He pulled out of the parking lot and onto the main road. Dan had to be at a hospital; it was figuring out which hospital that was the catch. Maya had mentioned that her mother worked at a hospital, hadn't she? River banks, that was it. Phil typed the address into his phone. There it was. Not that far, actually. 

 

Should he call Maya? What would he say? Hey, it's me, that loser guy that Sheila dumped Dan on with the honorary title of boyfriend and whom decided that he actually liked said boy and decided to kiss said boy in front of you like an idiot! He blushed angrily. What the hell was wrong with him? The roads were silent; it was so strange. He stopped at a red light, car idling noisily beneath him. 

 

Am I gay? He wondered to himself. What does that even mean? I've dated women all my life.   
You never cared for many of them, either, sneered a voice. You were just too nice to tell them.   
Well, he thought, except for Amelia. She was really extraordinary. She had been more than just his girlfriend. She was his inspiration- that is, until she decided that she was in love with someone else.   
Oh, stop whining, said another voice. Love hurts; get over it!  
Love hurts- that was the lesson that he had learned. But it didn't hurt to love Dan. It just ached right now because he was gone, and Phil wasn't sure whether or not they would see each other again.   
He shook his head. It was all just another part of Sheila's plan. Himself, Dan, Maya, and Ryan were all caught in her inextricable web. Now, Maya and Ryan weren't thinking straight. As for Dan- well, Phil just hoped he still remembered him. 

 

He realized only then that he had taken Dan's mother's phone instead of his own. Where was his phone? He pulled into the parking lot at River Banks. It was half an hour past midnight. Dan would probably be in the ER. What would Maya do to him? She hadn't seemed too upset then, but-

 

Phil froze in the doorway. There, in the waiting room just outside of the ER, was Maya, hands linked with Ryan. She had obviously been crying very hard and looked disgruntled and upset. She looked up at him in misery, and then recognition dawned in her eyes. Uh-oh. She was coming towards him, fists raised.

 

"Please, let me explain!" Phil yelped, dodging a side kick. "I don't want to fight you! I just want to make sure Dan's alri-" and he caught a blow in the stomach. Maya walked up to him, towering over him threateningly. 

 

"You... utter... useless.. perverted... COWARD!" she screeched, landing another blow on his shoulder. I HATE YOU!" Phil tried to skirt her next blow, but something prevented it from ever reaching him. "RYAN!" She yelled. "Let me go!" but her voice gave out. 

 

"No!" Ryan told her. Maya- use your common sense!" He forcefully turned her to face him. Maya- there is no way that Sheila isn't behind this. But we can't just assume anything about Phil. You know what Sheila is like- she sets thing up to make people look bad! Don't you remember what she did to you in the match before last? She nearly got you disqualified just because you said something that irked her!" Maya stopped struggling. "Maya, let Phil go see him. Maybe he can help. I'll go with him. I think you should stay here, for now." After some deliberation, Maya sat down. "We will be right back. I'll tell you how Dan's doing. She nodded ever so slightly. Ryan turned towards Phil. "Thank yo-" he started, but Ryan shook his head, as if to say, just come with me; Don't say anything in front of her. "Come on," he said. "Dan is this way." 

 

As they were passing hospital rooms, Phil broke the silence. "Thank you. I- I'm grateful that you believe me." 

 

"Well," Ryan responded, "you just don't seem like the kind of person who would do this to Dan. Despite what Maya says when she's panicked, I would like to think that I can tell the difference." he looked over at Phil. "You care about him." 

 

"I do," he responded simply, as though he were too tired to explain himself. They both walked into the room where Dan lay, chest rising and falling with the machine and pulse steadily spiking. "Dan!" He exclaimed under his breath. He grabbed his hand to feel his pulse. He noticed the heart monitor this time; he just wanted to feel it himself. He felt the blood coursing through Dan's veins and shook his head. Everything had happened so quickly. Dan's eyes were closed, and it was frightening to see him breathing with a machine pumping each breath into his lungs. He gave Dan's hand a squeeze. It was limp and lukewarm. Please, Dan, he begged silently. Please. Come out of this. Ryan was watching him silently. A nurse walked into the room. "No visitors," he said. 

 

"Please," Phil begged. He looked over at Ryan, and then back at the nurse. "We won't bother. We are close friends." The nurse shook her head. "Sorry," she said. "Those are just the rules. It's even past visitation for family members. The hospital is closing in five minutes, so unless you were both also drugged and soon to go into respiratory arrest, I suggest you two go home and come back tomorrow." 

 

"Yes ma'am," Ryan courteously responded. "Phil- do you mind if we talk?" Phil shook his head. Ryan sighed. "Okay. I'm going to try and convince Maya to talk to you. She's just really upset about Dan right now." He looked back at Phil. "She lost her brother about a year ago; just a few months ago she met Dan and they've been inseparable ever since. She cares for him just like he's her brother." He laughed. "Last semester she went over to Dan's house and drilled him on vocabulary for two hours straight every night for the upcoming Literature midterm and she made him write four practice essays!" Phil gave a halfhearted smile in return. "I don't think she's ever done that with anyone else before," Ryan continued. "She cares more about his grades than her own! Well-" he said, frowning, "almost anyways. She's just trying to compensate. I think she wants to impress her mother, but her brother was the favored older child. He was the perfect student- he was just so talented. I remember him; he was really nice to everyone. He was going to be the Valedictorian of his class." He shook his head. "It was really sad when he died." 

 

"I'm really sorry to hear that." Phil looked at the ground. But Maya is such a lovely person; she deserves to be happy." 

 

"She really does. She's too hard on herself, and her mother just didn't take it well at all. She's been needing support for a while. When she found Dan, she practically adopted him." He stopped in front of her.

 

Maya looked up at him and took a shaky breath. "Ryan," she said. She turned back to Phil. "I'm sorry," she told him. "I- I jumped to conclusions, and I wasn't fair to you. She wiped her face with her sleeve. "I just want to make sure Dan is okay and safe." She sniffled. "You.. I don't guess you really know what's going on either." 

 

Phil shook his head. "I wish I did, but I think that's something we're all going to have to figure out together. For Dan."

 

Maya nodded. "For Dan," she agreed. 

 

"For Dan," Ryan concluded, putting his hand out. 

 

Maya put hers over his, and Phil put his hand over both of theirs. "On three," Ryan said. "One, two, three!"

 

"For Dan!"

 

They broke their hands apart, and swallowed tears, fatigue, and contention. They were doing this for their friend, but now each was a part of something larger; it was in the air. Change was eminent, and it was for all of them, together. Now- they had to trust that Dan would awaken and complete the circle. They could face whatever challenge came. 

 

Maya looked up at Ryan and gave him a giddy, tear-stained smile. She wrapped her arms around him and closed her eyes. Ryan blushed and put his arm around her. 

 

He looked up at Phil and gave him an encouraging nod. Phil nodded in return, spirits lifted at the sight. He only wished-  
well, there was no point in wishing. He would just confidently say that Dan would recover. Because he would. He had to. Sheila wouldn't let him die.   
Sheila wouldn't let Dan die. 

 

As she ran down the dark corridors and streets, Sheila smiled.   
I am the god of liars. They pray to me for deliverance.  
"I heard you, Phil," she whispered. "Your god has heard you."


	12. Deliverance

(Friday Morning, April 20, 12:21 AM)

 

It was midnight when Dan woke up. He felt sore, and his shoulder throbbed. It was not splinted, he realized. It was dark; he couldn't discern his location by sight. He was laying on a rather stiff mattress, slightly elevated, and there were wires on his chest that connected him to a machine which was beeping steadily. He was in the hospital, he thought. The coarse cotton sheets and the smell of plastic and rubbing alcohol supported this conclusion. He listened for something besides the sound of his heart monitor. Nothing. No- wait. Footsteps. They were far off, but definitely footsteps. Someone was coming. He looked around for the time. He didn't have his watch or his phone. Maybe it was the nurse, coming to check on him. But then, he saw the light in the hallway coming from under the door go out, and he was enveloped in darkness. Only by the faint moonlight could he distinguish rough forms as she looked about. The footsteps had started again, closer than ever. Tap, tap, tap, tap, tap, tap, tap. The footsteps halted right outside of his door. Tap- and he heard the sound of the handle turning and it swinging open. Startled, he sat up straight in bed, shoulder still throbbing dully. 

 

"Who's there?" He squeaked, voice breaking. 

 

"Don't be afraid," said a warm and mellow voice. "I won't hurt you."

 

It was the voice of a woman, rich and deep, and he could barely make out her curving form by the poor, reflected light of the moon. "What do you want?" he managed. 

 

"Here, my child." He saw the form reach out towards him. He started when she grabbed his arm, but she was gentle. "Now, I have something that is going to help you." He felt her calmly reach across him and move the fabric down his right arm, exposing his collarbone. Every ounce of his being was telling him that he should not let her proceed, but something about her calmed him. He heard a sound like a tin opening, and then felt her fingers press something oily, like petroleum, into his skin and gently massage it in. He breathed in through his teeth when she went over the place where the bone was broken. She dipped her hand back into the tin and rubbed more on his injury. He yelped. 

 

"Ssssshhh," she soothed. "Just a bit more." She took another finger full of the stuff and smeared it over him, gently massaging it into the injury. "There," she said. They should re-splint it in the morning. If you need any more before or after then-" he felt her slip her hand under his pillow- "It will be right here. Put it in your pocket when they come." She backed off. He thought he could almost make out her face by the pale light coming in through the window. She looked older than his mother, but taller and more muscular, and completely unfamiliar to him. She turned away and said, "Good night." Without looking back, she closed the door and walked away. Tap, tap, tap, tap, tap. 

 

Groggily, he sat up slightly on the bed. Who was that? Did that woman just drug him? He had the worst headache. He vaguely remembered taking a pill before everything happened. He suspected that was the reason he was in the hospital. Where was... Phil? He had been... asleep, on his couch. And then Phil had left. That was all he remembered clearly. He was supposed to meet his friends. He sat fully upright. Maya and Ryan! Where were they? Everything was a haze in his mind; he couldn't discern dreams from reality from delirium. The last couple of days had been a blur. He remembered talking with Phil about Sheila, and then telling him that he should stay at his parents' house, but Phil didn't want him to. And- he remembered sitting next to him, just sitting there, like they had known each other forever. Then, he remembered Sheila visiting him and stepping on his toes. He wiggled them. They were just fine; he thought that was just a dream. Was it all just a dream? He heard feet shuffling a second time. This time, it was a nurse. 

 

"You're awake, Mr. Howell. I will tell the doctors and the other nurses; they will all be very happy to hear this. It was only last night that we took you off of the respirator. It is now-" he looked down at his watch- "1:00 in the morning. You were unconscious for over 48 hours. How are you feeling?" 

 

"I'm feeling rather tired," he admitted. "I don't remember much of what has happened over the past couple of days, at least not clearly. It all feels like a dream." 

 

The nurse nodded. "A depressant called GHB was found in your system in conjunction with a drink of alcohol, which combined caused your amnesia and respiratory arrest. You should drink lots of fluids to help rid your system of the drug. If you need the restroom, it is the door straight ahead." 

 

"Thank you," he said, trying to remember where he had last been and what he had been doing. He really couldn't remember much. His head hurt, but... his shoulder was not nearly as painful as it had been before. Whatever that mysterious lady had rubbed on him was helping significantly. He remembered what she had told him- 'Put it in your pocket when they come.' He slipped his hand underneath his pillow and drew out the tin of ointment, popped open its lid, and sniffed it. It smelled pleasantly of beeswax and herbal vegetation. He was incredulous. She rubbed mashed plant ointment on my shoulder and it's actually taking away the pain? Go figure. He closed the tin and slipped it into his pocket. Definitely keeping that, he thought. As if on cue, a doctor walked in, scribbling something on a clipboard. 

 

"Howell," he said, not bothering to look up. "You have recovered. Drink that water on your bedside table. I need your parents to sign some documents." He looked up.

 

"Um- I'm sorry, sir, but my parents are not here. They are both on call for their respective jobs." 

 

The doctor looked critical. "So, your parents left you alone, illegally, by yourself, and you became intoxicated with alcohol and a controlled substance, and your friends, perhaps, drove you to the nearest hospital?"

 

Dan looked like a deer caught in headlights. "Well, I mean, -NO! of course not! My... legal guardian is now my boyfriend! Yeah. He's not here right now, but he can sign those documents. And whatever else needs to be done." Now he realized why, exactly, Sheila had set things up that way. Who else in their right mind would agree to be Dan's legal guardian? All of his relatives lived really far away. Still. He blushed at the thought. 

 

"Well," the doctor said in an annoyed tone, "get him in here as soon as possible, please. There is a telephone in the waiting room; you can call as soon as you feel steady on both feet." With that, the grumpy doctor left, still scribbling on his paper in aggravation.

 

He felt his heart pounding in his chest. It wasn't a lie. Sheila had gotten Phil the papers to prove it. Where were they? Dan's shoulder was now almost completely painless. He couldn't believe it. Whatever that lady put in the ointment must be magic. He looked around. A couple of nurses were arguing in the hallway. He took the tin out of his pocket and rubbed some more of the stuff on his shoulder, covering it back up quickly. another nurse came in to take his vitals. 

 

"Normal temperature," she remarked. The machine squeezing his arm relaxed. "Abnormally low blood pressure. Howell, are you feeling at all dizzy? Disoriented?"

 

"Not really," Dan said. "I could definitely use some ibuprophen right now, though. I have a bad headache." 

 

She looked up at him. "Right then. I'll ask the doctor if it's alright to give you some."

 

Dan didn't get sleep that night. He stayed up wondering what his friends were doing and if they had any idea where Sheila was or what to do next. He was going to call Phil as soon as possible like the doctor had told him to. He felt a small thrill at the prospect. Call Phil. Something swimming in the haze of the drugs told him that something had happened while he was inebriated.  
No, no. What are you talking about? Dan, you don't know anything. You don't even know where your friends are.  
It was frustrating to feel so helpless, like he was being blown from one bed to the next, always being taken care of like a child. He needed to know what was going on. He didn't want to constantly depend on others to control the situation.  
And then, there were his parents. He couldn't help but wonder if something had happened to them. It's probably exactly what Sheila said, he thought. She made sure that they went on call. So, why hadn't either parent contacted him, at least once, to let him know when they would be back? They usually at least did that much for their son. His parents were easily caught up, but not outright neglectful. He dreaded finding out that they had been kidnapped by Sheila's gang ties.

 

So many emotions were gripping him at that moment, he thought he should just sleep and deal with everything in the morning, but alas, he couldn't. The hours went by, and Dan answered nurses' questions and took ibuprofen, drank water and waited for dawn. 

 

"Howell!" barked the grumpy doctor from that morning when he had woken up. "It's now 7:20. I need you to go call your legal guardian and get him over here." 

 

Dan sat up and swung his legs over the side of the bed. "Yes, sir." 

 

The doctor frowned. "AMANDA!" he shouted. A nurse came bustling over. 

 

"Yes, doctor Springer?"

 

"Escort Howell here to the lobby, please. I don't want him passing out again." 

 

The nurse took hold of his left arm. "Lean your weight on me if you need to," she said. He leaned against her to establish a steady gait, and then walked arm in arm with the nurse until he reached the lobby.

 

His eyes widened in surprise. Maya, Ryan, and Phil were all sitting in the waiting room, and they were all staring at him. 

 

"Dan!" Said Phil and Maya in unison. 

 

"Dan! Are you feeling well?" Ryan asked.

 

"Ryan? Maya? What are you doing here so early?" He gave them both hugs and smiled. "I'm so glad to see you guys," he said, burying his chin in Maya's shoulder.

 

Phil shuffled his foot. "Do you remember me, Dan?" he asked. "I'm-" but Dan had already thrown his arms around Phil. 

 

Maya just smiled and looked at Ryan, who returned her look with a small one-sided shrug. Yep. When did you figure it out? Ryan asked silently. Seriously? Maya returned. I don't know... when they kissed and Phil chased him all the way to the hospital just to see if he was alright?? Ryan chuckled. "I thought you thought Phil was working for Sheila.," he muttered, leaning in beside her. She shook her head. "I wasn't thinking straight. I realized it as soon as you talked some sense into me. You're pretty smart, for a boy," Maya remarked under her breath. Ryan gave her a crooked grin and she laughed.

 

Dan and Phil were oblivious to this discourse. When they broke apart, Phil was trying to conceal a furious blush. "I thought we might have lost you," he said quietly. "God, I'm an idiot! I should have known the difference between some random drug and ibuprofen!" 

 

Dan looked confused. "So, the medicine you were giving me wasn't actually medicine at all. That's refreshing to know. Sheila screwed us over again. Well-" he corrected quickly, "screwed me over. You guys honestly don't need to be involved in this." 

 

"Dan," Phil said, "Sheila knows where I live. She came over to my house and threatened me."

 

Maya nodded. "Phil is just as caught in her web as you are. Whether we like it or not, we're all involved in this, whatever this is, and we're all going to be here for you every step of the way until your parents return and Sheila is in prison where she belongs with her boyfriend," she said. 

 

"Prison?" Dan looked at Phil, Maya, and Ryan in turn. "But... she won't be able to finish school! She actually cares about her grades, you know. She has a future-" Maya gave him an exasperated look.

 

"Dan,-" She started, but he interrupted. "She isn't all bad. She's so smart and talented and she's probably going to be Salutatorian at least and-" 

 

"DAN!" Maya exclaimed. "She put you in the hospital- not once, but twice. She is using us, and she has sent your parents away. She's involved in serious federal crime and god knows how many first degree murders, and she does nothing but antagonize and torture everyone she meets! She's going to prison!" 

 

Ryan nodded. "Whether she likes it or not. We have to make sure she is no longer a danger."

 

Ryan turned to Maya. "Don't you think that it's time we call the police into the matter?" 

 

Maya nodded. "At this point, I don't know that we can risk more lives by not calling them in." 

 

"Wait!" said Phil. They both turned to look at him. "We should talk about this first. I mean, we don't know just how much power she has yet. We need to share perspectives and stories. Sheila keeps throwing us off track before we can have any kind of discussion."

 

"Exactly why we should let the Police in before we get any deeper into this," Ryan remarked. 

 

"Well," Maya said hesitatingly, "He may be right. It's quite possible that they already know about Charli but they just can't deal with him at the moment."

 

But just then, Doctor Springer walked in. "Howell? He called."Howell! There you are! Have you called your-" he paused and looked at the three people that Dan was conversing with. "Well?" he asked impatiently. "Which one of you is the legal guardian of Daniel Howell?" Surely only idiot parents would let a bunch of kids take care of this stupid teenager, he thought. 

 

Dan elbowed Phil in the ribs. Boyfriend, he mouthed. Phil nodded. "I am, sir!" he said, stepping forward." 

 

"And who might you be?" he asked. 

 

"I'm boyfriend and legal guardian of Dan," he responded confidently, more confidently than he felt.

 

Doctor Springer looked up at him, eyes squinted. Phil felt himself inwardly cower at his gaze. "I'll look you up in my records," he said to Phil. He left the room in an uneasy silence. Five minutes later he returned. "Fine then," he said at last, apathetically. "Fill out these forms, and sign in the bottom lefthand corner of the third page. When you're done, give them to the accountant." He thrust a clipboard filled with forms at Phil and then turned heel and left.

 

"Well, he was a ray of sunshine," Dan remarked. "He came in at seven this morning after I had been up all night and demanded that I hurry up and call my parents." 

 

"Says more about him than it does about any of us, I suppose," Phil returned. "He probably had mean parents or something." Phil watched Dan sway slightly. He still looked somewhat intoxicated. His hair stuck out in places, and there were bags under his eyes, but Phil honestly thought there was no one more handsome. Dan caught his eye and Phil gave him a slight smile. He looked at Phil's shirt and then looked away, expressionless. His heart sank in his chest. Dan probably didn't like him... he felt a pang of embarassment. Why had he even done that? Dan probably was completely straight and homop...  
no, never mind. He would just forget about it. Thinking about it just created problems that didn't exist. Shouldn't exist. It wasn't relevant at all, was it?

 

Maya spoke up. "Alright, well unless you all plan on us having our little powwow in this clinic, awaiting the return of Doctor Grumpy, I suggest we all drive over to my house." 

 

"Alright," Phil spoke acquiesced. "Let me see if I can go find Doctor Grumpy, though-" he broke off when he felt someone tap him on the shoulder. 

 

"Excuse me," said doctor Springer. A look of horror spread across Phil and Maya's faces. "Have you filled everything out yet?"

 

Blanched, Phil looked back down at the sheet. "Um.." He flipped through to the last page and signed it. The doctor snatched it from him. "Good enough," he said. "Your bill will be sent electronically via e-mail," he said to Phil. "Here-" he thrust a bottle of ibuprofen into his hands- "make sure he takes this. Young man-" he turned to Dan- "No more drugs! And at least have the sense not to drink alcohol with any kind of drug. Keep that up and you'll be dead faster than your parents can tell you you're stupid." Dan gulped and nodded. With those words, the doctor strode away.

 

Maya looked throughly embarrassed. "Let's just go," she said. 

 

When two cars pulled up into the driveway of Maya's house, it was noon, and everyone had already gone to lunch to laugh off some of the nervousness and sense of foreboding hanging over their heads. They mutually, silently agreed not to mention Sheila until they were at Maya's house, and they had enjoyed their lunch modestly. Now, however, it was important that they talked, even if that meant merely coming to better personal understandings of one another. Maya unlocked the door. "Come in," she said over her shoulder. She lead Dan, Phil, and Ryan into her loving room, and looked around. Dan had never been inside of her house before. It was pleasant, but felt stifling in comparison to his apartment.

 

"Maya, don't you ever open the windows?" he asked. "It's really hot in here." 

 

"No, because if I do, it gets even more humid in here, and the mosquitos are really bad."

 

"Oh," he said, sitting down on the couch. He glanced around the living room. Across from him was a rickety looking antique chair and two stools. There was an old grandfather clock standing in the corner of the room, and the entire living room was peppered with cobwebs in high places. The house itself seemed neglected, and everything in it looked old and worn, either antique or otherwise. It was somewhat dusty but there were houseplants everywhere- a bamboo plant on the oddly placed dresser, a pothos plant trailing down the window on either side, a huge african violet sitting in a pot next to the door, a donkey's tail hanging from the low light fixture hanging above them, and a snake plant sitting next to the threshold to the kitchen. It looked like the formal dining room table was host to at least a dozen more strange looking plants that would have stolen some attention from Audrey II. Everywhere he looked, Dan noticed more plants. With a start he realized that his hand was resting right next to a little potted cactus plant. He drew it away quickly and looked around for any more inconveniently placed cacti. 

 

"Okay," Maya said slowly. "First thing that must be established is who knows what. I think Dan should go first, as he probably will not remember some of it." Phil nodded in agreement. 

 

Dan looked over at Phil uncertainly. Phil looked down at his clasped hands. "Well," he started, "I remember that Sheila sent my parents on call after I went to the hospital with a broken collarbone, and then I went with Phil, because she changed the hospital records so that he was legally my boyfriend and guardian." 

 

"That's all true," she said. "Keep going."

 

"And then," he continued, looking at Phil, "I talked with Phil. We decided that you guys were going to come over at two thirty that evening. I don't know what happened."

 

Phil stared at Dan, watching him blink as his eyes moved about, trying to recall those nights that nagged at Phil's own mind. "Do you remember what I told you? You wanted to go back over to your parents house."

 

Dan nodded. "I wanted to stay there instead. But apparently, it doesn't matter much where I stay. I'm still Sheila's target," he said. 

 

Maya interrupted. "We actually found out quite a lot of information about Sheila. We don't know where Dan's parents are yet, but-"

 

"Couldn't we try calling them now, with Dan's phone?" Phil asked.

 

Maya looked annoyed. "That's what I was about to say." She handed Dan his phone. "I bet you've been missing this," she said. 

 

Dan unlocked his phone and scrolled through his contacts until he found his mom's number. He hit send. 

 

Ring. Ring. Ring. Ring.  
Hello. You have reached the voicemail of Robert Howell. I am not currently available, but I can take a message."

 

Dan sighed in disappointment.

 

Beep.

 

"Hello Dad. I hope you are okay because you aren't answering your phone. I just called to let you know that I'm out of the hospital and I'm alright. My friends have been taking care of me, and I will hopefully see you soon. Bye."

Maya looked at him anxiously. "Dan, I really am sorry. I have an idea, though." 

 

"Wait-" Dan said. He tapped on Dad, and pushed share my location. Maybe he would see that Dan had shared his location and would return the favor. "Okay," he said. "I shared my location with him. 

 

Phil bit his lip. Dan didn't remember. Of course he didn't remember. He had been delirious. He imagined the taste of Dan's lips as they had hungrily enveloped his own. He imagined his stiff, masculine form pressing against his chest, so differently from how kissing a girl had felt. And he just imagined the stars, where he could lose himself by Dan's side, and where Dan had told him without speaking that he wanted to stay with Phil. Was it all just his imagination all along?

 

His father hadn't answered the phone. Of course, Dan wasn't betting that he would pick up anyways, but it was still disappointing for it to actually happen. Sheila had kicked him before he even had time to think about what was happening. In the same way, she had quickly and elegantly set first one thing and then another into motion as she saw fit. She loved to threaten, and maybe Dan wouldn't be so afraid of her if he didn't know how capable she was of carrying her any and every threat. Dan imagined himself executing a spinning jump kick. Everything was simpler when one had time to react, to think about the situation. He could perform an inside arm block, and then draw himself into a tiger stance, chamber, and then- he noticed that Phil was staring at him again, and his mind went fuzzy. He blushed, remembering how he had felt when Phil had hugged him back. Hugged him back. Wait a minute-

 

"What happened that night?" he blurted out.

 

"What- you mean, the night you, well, passed out?" he asked. Dan nodded, pursing his lips. 

 

Maya and Ryan exchanged glances. "Well," Maya spoke up, "You were delirious."

 

Dan rolled his eyes. "I remember that much, jeez." 

 

"You cleaned my entire flat," Phil answered. "It was really weird. And then you went inside and took your medicine." Suddenly, his eyes widened. "Oh my god!" He raked his hand through his hair. "I poured a glass of Vodka earlier to wipe down the counters. You didn't-"

 

Dan nodded vigorously. "I drank that by accident, thinking it was water! You know, I already wiped the counters down, by the way."

 

"You did?" Phil asked, sounding uncomfortable. 

 

"Yeah, at least I think I did. Or maybe that was just another one of my weird dreams."  
"Weird dreams?" Maya inquired. "What kind of dreams, Dan?"

 

"I would rather not remember those," he said. "They were all about Sheila." 

 

"That's exactly why you need to remember them," she said. 

 

Dan sighed. "Fine. In one of them, Sheila walked right up to me and stepped on my toes. And-" he winced. 

 

"Dan," Maya said cautiously. "You can tell us. We are here to help you." 

 

"I know," he snapped. "I just don't- you know what? Fine. She told me that love wasn't real. Bloody psycho. She told me I probably didn't love my parents." He stopped, pushing his emotions back down into the pit of his stomach. "Then, she asked me if I reminded her of someone she knew."

 

"And did she?" Maya inquired curiously.

 

He looked into Phil's eyes. Yes, he wanted to say. Instead, he responded, "Well, not really. She just looked like herself. Then I felt sick to my stomach and I nearly passed out. She- she put her arm around me and comforted me. And she told me that true love was the most valuable thing in the world or something like that." He shook his head. "I'm so sick of her." He buried his face in his hands. 

 

He really felt like crying right now in frustration out of helplessness, but he wouldn't. Not in front of his friends. He was just upset, that was all. To be honest, there were so many emotions knotted in his stomach he couldn't make heads or tails of anything. He seethed in agitation, recognizing one of them was nausea. He wished he could throw up; that would at least take care of one of his problems.

 

He felt Maya's arm wrap around him, patting his back. "Dan," she said, "I know this is a lot for you to take in, but we-" for once, Maya seemed like she couldn't find the right thing to say. Dan looked into her eyes, his thank you stated there. She teared up and hugged him tightly. "You're not alone, Dan," she murmured. "We love you." 

 

Phil was sure the inside of his lip was bleeding, he was biting it so hard. Dan was crying, just a few tears escaping his eyes despite being unwanted. Dan didn't- you know what? to hell with what Dan did and didn't remember, he thought. Why can't I hug him? As soon as Maya had released him from her grasp, Dan felt a pair of male arms squeeze him tightly. It was Phil. He caved in at Phil's embrace, and wrapped both of his arms around him. This was so much better than a dream. Pressed up against Phil's chest, he could hear his heart beating at a slightly faster tempo than normal. This felt... somehow familiar. He had a dream about it, he supposed. A dream about Phil... 

 

When at last Dan let go and looked up at Phil, he looked nervous. Dan looked quickly over at Ryan. 

 

"Don't tell me we're all going to hug and cry some more," Ryan said. 

 

Dan blushed and Ryan laughed. "You know, we ought to actually discuss Sheila at some point during our meeting," Ryan said.

 

"Ugh. Ryan, can't you have some patience? We are."

 

Ryan looked skeptically at her. "That isn't what you said when Dan went missing."

 

She ignored his last statement. "So, Dan," she continued, clearing her throat, "Tell us what happened after you had a dream about her. Did she tell you anything important in the dream? Maybe she's somehow talking to you when you're asleep or something."

 

"Maya, do you have any idea how crazy that sounds?" Ryan asked.

 

"It's not that crazy. Think about it- she has Dan's number. She could just call him and talk to him while he was asleep, you know. Tell him stuff."

 

"And who would answer the phone?"

 

"Do you really think that Sheila can't find a workaround? We haven't even discussed how she got the pills swapped out." Maya turned towards Phil. "Do you remember the pills looking like normal ibuprophen when you took them home, or were they capsules all along?"

 

Phil shrugged. "No idea. Sorry." Phil thought to himself that he wasn't stupid, but he sure wasn't the most observant person either. Things tended to escape his notice. Sheila obviously had taken advantage of that. Maybe that's why she wanted me in the first place, he thought. I'm pretty easily misdirected. Too easily misdirected, he thought, looking over at Dan. He was sitting on his legs, resting his splinted shoulder against a pillow. 

Ryan was beginning to get impatient with his friends. Maya had kept him up two nights in a row worrying, fretting, and planning how to help rescue Dan, whatever that meant, and now she was relaxing and chatting like the situation wasn't serious at all. Meanwhile, Sheila was probably out causing trouble or thinking up more mischief as they sat there, unable to pull it together. Dan looked alright, but the best friend whom he thought he knew so well seemed daunted, intimidated by the threat that Sheila posed. Even though he was taller than everyone else in his class, he looked so small curled up on Maya's couch. It wasn't like Dan to hide from a fight or wince at a name. Maya was acting giddy but pretending like their entire discourse and ongoings at the hospital had never happened, and Phil- well, honestly, he still didn't know much about this guy, aside from the fact that he was already in college and had taken care of Dan, and something had happened between them during that time which Dan didn't seem to clearly remember. He thought of how strangely Dan had acted, lolling about and looking deeply harrowed presumedly over his parents' disappearance but simultaneously engrossed in Phil as he had kissed him that night. Ryan didn't know what to make of it, aside from the fact that they both liked each other but kept beating around the bush and pretending like this-and-that hadn't happened. It was frustrating to watch and even more frustrating to know that it was bothering Dan, but he couldn't really do anything about it. What could he do but wait and try to help?

 

"Okay," Ryan said. Let's not focus on details that, let's be honest, nobody noticed. I want to know if anyone has seen Sheila lately." 

 

"Actually," Phil said, "She visited me that night, the same night that Dan accidentally became intoxicated." 

 

"Are we sure it was an accident?" Maya asked. 

 

"Who knows," said Ryan carelessly. "Phil, continue?"

 

Maya looked annoyed with Ryan. "So... she somehow got the keys to my apartment and came in. She just walked in like I was expecting her and started ranting to me, like a rehearsed speech about love. Then, after nearly ten minutes of irrelevant banter, she slapped me, so I tried to hit her back, but-" 

 

"Wait," said Maya. "So she just slapped you out of the blue, unprovoked? And she-"

 

"For heaven's sakes, Maya, can't you hear someone out?" Ryan asked, obviously thoroughly annoyed.

 

"Well aren't you helpful tonight?" she retorted. 

 

Dan smirked. "You two fight like an old married couple," he remarked.

 

Maya blushed furiously. "Dan, I swear to God if you get involved in this-" She sat down, apparently having changed her mind. She returned her attention to Phil, trying to look casual. She fake smiled at him. 

 

"We're all tired," said Phil. "I promise I won't take too long telling what happened, and then I'll answer questions. How's that?" 

 

"Go ahead," assured Ryan.

 

"So... I tried to hit her back, but she put me into a joint lock. The next thing I knew she had kicked me and was on the other side of the room, hissing like an angry cat. She gave me a warning and told me that she would kill me if I turned out to be less than who she thought I was. Who does she think I am, anyways?" Besides Dan's boyfriend. "Anyways," he said, drawing a breath, "then she told me that I was caught in a noose or something like that. She told me the more that I struggled, the tighter it would get. I honestly have no idea what she is even referring to. Then, she said that the first clue was that I should go to the school, and that Dan would know the rest. She mentioned something about doing something important and that it was not only a matter of life and death, but that the fate of humanity rested upon it. She sure likes to be dramatic."

 

Dan nodded. "When she makes a point, it smarts," he said, absentmindedly rubbing his shoulder and heaving a sigh. "She used to tell me mean things sometimes when we were sparring. She was always right, though. For a while, I thought she actually liked me. She would correct all of my classwork in Bio rather violently and hand it back to me and tell me to fix it."

 

Maya looked incredulous. "And so, naturally, you assumed that she liked you. Because she told you mean things and marked up your papers and pointed out everything you did wrong." She burst out laughing, a high, rapid, nervous laugh that had a hint of good-natured condescension. "Oh, Dan," she managed. "People who like you don't hurt you for their own pleasure." She stopped laughing and sighed. "Some people, just, don't know how to love."

 

"Why does Sheila keep mentioning love?" Ryan asked. "She is obviously rather deprived of it, but how else is it relevant to us all? Is it code for something?"

 

"I don't know," Maya admitted. "Maybe she is trying to tell us that we have to stick together if we want to overcome whatever kind of thing she is going to do next. You know, love. We're all friends, aren't we?"

 

"Sort of," said Ryan truthfully. "I mean, we aren't perfect. Dan and Phil have only known each other for a week, I have only really known you for a month, and Dan has only got to know you as of two months and a week ago. The longest any of us have known each other is a little over a year, Dan and I. We both just met Phil. I think we still have a bit of getting-to-know to do."

 

Maya pursed her lips. Ryan knew that she didn't want to hear that. She wanted Dan to stay with her and live as her adopted brother, but he knew that isn't what Dan would want, although he would probably enjoy visiting and staying with her often. Dan was a good person and an even better friend. He was just out of it, and that was quite understandable considering the situation. He just didn't know how to bring him comfort and some sense of stability in such an unstable time. Ryan was trying to reach out, and Maya was, too, but Dan was resisting. 

 

"Well," Dan said, speaking up after a while, "Sheila never told me anything. I don't know what she was playing at telling you that I knew something about what's going on. She has kept me, almost deliberately, in the dark." 

 

Phil looked disappointed. "That's just like Sheila to do something like that," Maya remarked.

 

"And you know her so well, how, again?" Ryan asked.

 

"Well, I would like to think I've figured out enough about her by now," Maya retorted. "After all, I'm the one who did the research-"

 

"That's just your problem," said Ryan. "You think that you can just do some research and suddenly you know someone, because you've pieced together a bunch of random facts about who they are. Well, I have news for you. You don't know her, Maya, any more than I do and any more than Dan does!"

 

"I know more about her life than anyone in this room!" Maya retorted angrily. "You guys don't seem to get it. She's dangerous because she's so unpredictable, but there's always at least a pattern or a guide to the behavior of any given individual! Did you ever take Psych?"

 

"No, sorry," Ryan pretended to apologize. "I didn't know that psychoanalyzing the thoughts of an insane criminal was going to help us so much." 

 

Maya looked thoroughly agitated. "You bullheaded brute!" She exclaimed, rising from her chair. "Think about what you just said! We actually have some marginal chance of figuring her out if we work together, but noooo, you won't hear of it? Well what's your bright idea, Starling? Huh?" 

 

"Maybe I would tell you if you ever stopped interrupting!" Ryan countered. 

 

"Well, you just KEEP ON RACKING-" Maya was cut short by a loud shout.

 

"GUYS!" Phil shouted. Maya and Ryan, startled, sat back down. "We aren't going to get anywhere by arguing about it. Sheila may very well have been esoteric, but at least she gave us a clue. I guess she was bored of watching us blunder about. She told me to start at the school." 

 

Dan looked at Phil. "Well, I bloody well don't know what she expects us all to do together. We aren't an adventure expedition or some amateur team of sleuths, we're just trying to get our lives back to normal and free of Sheila disruptions. I just want my parents back!" he exclaimed. 

 

"I know," said Ryan. "We are just going to have to play along with her for now until we get a clear idea of what she wants from us and how to stop her before she gets to it."

 

"We aren't about to go running about our high school in the dark like a bunch of criminals, waiting to get jumped by Sheila again," Maya snarled. "I've had enough of this nonsense, always doing what Sheila wants us to do!" She sat up. "I've got ideas of my own regarding how to get her to talk."

 

The glint in Maya's eye was startling, and it frightened Ryan. "Maya," he said carefully, "Maybe we should think a little bit before we try anything. Do we know where Sheila is, or if she is planning on coming back to school?

 

Phil took a deep breath. "Look, whatever we do, we had better get used to working together, as a team. Sheila probably expected contentions to arise, and if any one of us ends up separated, we'll be vulnerable."

 

Dan felt vulnerable. He wanted to lean against Phil, close his eyes, and be done with the day, to hell with all this figuring out what to do next and anticipating Sheila's next move. He was beyond tired, and he needed rest badly. His friends were so out of it they were arguing with each other like an old married couple, and Phil was just trying to hold everything together. He realized that he was touching fingers with Phil. He quickly pulled his hand away. Ugh. When would this day end?

 

Phil looked at his watch. 1:00. He absentmindedly watched Maya and Ryan arguing with each other. He sure didn't feel like being agreeable after how his week went, but he knew that they couldn't afford to just argue. Suddenly, he had an idea. "Okay everyone!" he said brightly, clapping his hands together. "Let's play a game! We can start off with everyone's favorite color." 

 

Ryan looked bewildered, and Maya still looked half irritated. "What?" she said, more rudely than intended. "Color? Sorry?"

 

"Yes," Phil continued patiently. "Your favorite color."

 

"Mine is red," Ryan volunteered. "And muted green is probably my second favorite color."

 

"What about yours, Dan?" 

 

"I like the color black," he said.

 

"Mine is blue!" said Phil. "I like deep sky blue; it's such a great color."

 

Maya looked thoughtful. "Well, if one color is superior to the rest, that would be White, the most beautiful color, even though Magenta is more pleasing."

 

"That's a well thought out answer," Phil complemented. 

 

"Ha!" Dan burst out. "You ask for everyone's favorite colors and we come up with red, white, black, and blue. I can't think of more boring colors if I tried. Those sound like the colors of getting beat up," he added. It got Maya to laugh anyways. Phil looked confused.

 

"What does the color white have to do with getting beat up?" Ryan asked.

 

"Y'know," Dan said, "Someone hits you really hard and you see a bright white light."

 

Now Phil was laughing. Ryan looked perplexed a second longer, and then laughed also.

 

Dan was smiling now. He liked it when his friends laughed. It felt like they had always been together, even if Maya and Ryan had literally just met Phil. 

 

"Okay then," said Maya, "Smart Alec, Dan." She smirked playfully at him and he grinned."How do we play the game, Phil?" She asked.

 

"Well," Phil continued, "Now you choose a teammate, based off of whose color you like the best. If there is contention, then the competitors all choose a color and whomever has the closest related colors on a color wheel, wins," he finished.

 

"I'm with Phil!" Dan blurted out. 

 

"I'm with Phil; sorry Maya," said Ryan.

 

"Be that way," she teased.

 

"Okay, tiebreaker! I'm thinking of a color, now you think of one, Dan, Ryan. Have you got a color? Now blurt it out!"

 

"Turquoise!" "Navy!" Shouted Dan and Ryan in unison.

 

"Okay," said Phil. "I was thinking of brown. Which one of you said Turquoise?"

 

Ryan raised his hand. "Okay, you're on my team." 

 

"But we both chose blue!" Dan protested.

 

"You chose the exact compliment to my color, as it is a tone/shade of orange, Dan," Phil countered. "Ryan was by no means close but he was technically closer than you."

 

"Oh," Dan responded. 

 

"Okay, Dan and Maya versus Ryan and I!" Phil said. "Now we mix our colors, the last colors which we claimed. Dan- that would be navy, Ryan, that would be Turquoise. Whichever team has the purest color, that is, the least muddied, wins."

 

So, we are mixing Turquoise and Brown, and Maya and Dan, you are mixing Navy and white." 

 

Maya laughed. "Okay, we win. Can we give the whole color theory thing a break now?" 

 

"Wait! Not yet!" Okay, so when we mix Turquoise and Brown, we get a muddy green which contains white, black, orange, and a green-blue hue. When we mix navy and white, we get a light navy which contains white, black, and a pure blue hue. So yes, Maya and Dan, you win!"

 

"Where and why did you learn about color theory?" Ryan asked curiously.

 

"I took an oil painting class semester before least as an elective. It was pretty fun," Phil shrugged. "I memorized a bunch of the techniques and stuff. I still can't paint for my life, though," he said.  
"Cool," said Maya. Ryan was pleasantly surprised by her reaction. Somehow, Phil had managed to put her in a better mood. He would have to remember that color trick the next time she started going off about something that he said.

 

"Okay," Maya said, taking a deep breath. "Is there anything else which is really important which we need to tell one another?" Everyone was quiet. "Okay; let me rephrase. Dan! Start talking." She rounded on him, where he had returned to his place on the couch. 

 

"Ah- alright." Dan said uncertainly. "Well, I don't remember a large part of what happened, but I had the dream about Sheila that I already told you about, and then I had another dream, which I think was about her."

 

"Go on," Maya said.

 

"Well, her voice was coming out of a creature which looked like a cross between a black cobra and a moth." he shuddered. "It was horrible. Anyways, she told me that I had passed her first test admirably. And she said that I would need to consult with my friends to pass the second. She said that she would come, I don't remember when specifically, but I think it was more or less the next day. Then, she said she would be watching me until then." He shook his head and grimaced. "She takes the cake for being creepy and talented at the same time."

 

"How is she doing this?" Maya asked.

 

"I don't know," Dan responded, exasperated. "I've been unconscious or semi-conscious for a good chunk of the time she's been messing around." He sighed, looking to Phil. Phil was looking at him in the most peculiar way. Phil blinked quickly and looked away. Dan's heart dropped in disappointment. He felt fingertips brush against his own. Phil's hand was barely eclipsing his own, nails covering his first three fingers. It's probably an accident. It's nothing.  
Still, he wanted to test that theory. Did he dare? He bit his lip. He wasn't really doing this. He was just shifting his weight, that was all. If Phil happened to perceive it as something else- well, would he? Dan realized Maya was speaking.

 

"...and so therefore, I would guess she has it set up through your phone's voice messaging system. What do you think, Dan? Does that seem to check out?"

 

"Hu- yeah, I mean, I guess so," he responded noncommittally. "I just want to know what she meant by she would see me the next day. I never saw her."

 

"You never saw her, but it is probable..." Maya trailed off. Dan quickly lifted his hand up and put it on top of Phil's. Phil tensed suddenly. "Oh, sorry," Dan said, lifting his hand, pretending that he had done it by accident. "No problem," Phil muttered. Dan couldn't see his reaction; he had turned away to stare out of the window. Ugh. He was tired; it was definitely time for this day to end. Still, his heart fluttered.

 

Maya couldn't tell if Dan was really listening. It seemed like he was mildly distracted as she talked to him. Why was Dan remembering his dreams, but not his daily experiences? And what did Sheila mean about 'the first test?' Was it a test to see if they could become a flawless team? If so, Maya thought with guilt, they were probably failing. She had done nothing but fly off the handle ever since Dan was first hospitalized.  
It's important to protect Dan, and he needs to be okay! protested a voice.  
You need to calm down, said another. Think with your head, not with your heart. You aren't helping Dan by grilling him on details that he probably needs time to remember and recover from. Maya cleared her throat.

 

"Well, I think that we have a good head start on what to do next. I don't think Sheila expects us to be fast or anything; she knows we're not going to be able to match her pace. Dan- it's pretty clear that you need rest." Dan bowed his head in agreement. "Phil- I'm sure after everything that's happened, you could use a break, too," she said. "Ryan- well, I should have given you down time a long time ago. As for myself, I see that I'm probably not helping right now and this isn't the time to go analyzing Sheila's every action. I think that a night's sleep will benefit us all, so let's just set aside our hesitations and worries so we can get what we really need."

 

Ryan looked impressed with her. 

 

"Thanks," Phil said. 

 

"Okay, so- You guys are invited to stay if you want to, but you're probably going to want to go back to your homes. Dan- you can stay the night with me. My mom set up a bedroom just for you."

 

Dan looked over at Phil, and then at Maya. "Wait," he said hesitatingly. "How do I know Sheila won't come and stab me in my sleep and send me to the hospital again if I don't stay with Phil?"

 

Maya shrugged. "How do you know she won't stab you anyways? Certainly didn't stop her from drugging you." 

 

"That was an accident!" Dan said. Maya looked skeptical. "I mean, the overdose was caused by accidental ingestion of alcohol and that drug. So... technically she didn't mean to?"

 

"Dan, she somehow gave you a date rape drug instead of ibuprofen. There is honestly no tellings with her. We will just have to keep an eye out. Maybe it would be better if I roomed with you, that way I'll know if something happens in the middle of the night."

 

"Well, I still think I should go with Phil," he persisted. "What if Sheila comes back and threatens him again?"

 

Maya looked like she was about to argue, but seemingly changed her mind. "Okay, Dan, whatever you prefer to do. But-" she looked pleadingly at him- "at least room with Phil. That way, if something happens, you'll know and be able to react immediately. Time is money, especially when you're dealing with her. Oh, yeah, and I have a sleeping bag you can borrow, Dan, and let me get you a pillow-" before Dan could respond, she had trotted off to retrieve the items.

 

"Uh," Dan said, turning to Phil, "Is it okay if I room with you? I mean, I could stay with Maya if-"

 

"No! It's fine," Phil assured him. "Whatever it takes to stay safe, or at least try to," he said.

 

"Thanks." He examined Maya's carpet. 

 

A minute later, Maya came back with a sleeping bag and a pillow, which had been impossibly shoved into a plastic gallon ziplock bag, and she handed it to Dan. "There you are," she said. "Oh, and if you need a toothbrush, I have one of those, and floss too-"

 

"It's alright," Phil interrupted. "We'll just run by the store on our way back to the flat."

 

"No, I insist. Here-" she handed Dan a neatly organized travel baggie with a toothbrush, a miniature tube of toothpaste, floss, and a little bottle of mouthwash. "And just call me if you need anything else."

 

Phil smiled. "Thank you, Maya, but I assure you I'll take good care of him. You don't have to go out of your way for us."  
Phil just realized he had said 'us.' "Good boyfriend," he imagined a smug Sheila saying.  
That isn't how I meant it! he retorted angrily in his head.

 

Maya smiled at Dan while he was distracted with the things she had just piled on him. Phil would take care of him; it made her glad to know that. She had been stupid to jump to conclusions about Phil in her haste of trying to find blame and keep Dan safe. She still felt bad about trying to hurt him. He had been really pleasant and nothing but kind to all of them and she owed him an apology. 

 

"Okay, Phil," she smiled. "Phil- could I have a word with you? For just a moment, I mean?"

 

"Sure," he agreed uncertainly. 

 

She pulled him to the kitchen. "I owe you an apology for how I treated you at the hospital." She looked genuinely apologetic. "I'm so sorry. There is really no excuse for my behavior." 

 

Phil looked surprised, and then grateful. "It's okay, Maya," he said quietly. "I understand. You really care about Dan and you just want to make sure that nothing hurts him."

 

"Yeah," she said shyly. "I guess I do. I mean- really, though. I hope you can forgive me."

 

"Maya, you're a good person. You do a lot for Dan but make mistakes just like the rest of us. Thank you, though." He grinned and rubbed his shoulder. "You gave me quite the bruise. I'm glad Ryan intervened on my behalf." 

 

She paused. "Phil?" she asked. "This is a bit of a personal question, but," she turned around to make sure no one else was there. "Do you, I mean, what makes you care about Dan so much? I mean, it's something about him, right? It's like an instinct to help him and protect him, right?"

 

"Um, well, I guess, yeah. He's kind of charming. I mean, you know, he's special."  
good job, Phil. When you're in a hole, STOP DIGGING! he thought.  
He could feel himself blushing. Well crap. Now his brain was short circuiting.

 

Maya smiled, chewing on her lip. "Yeah, he is," she responded warmly. "He likes you a lot."

 

"What? Oh, yeah, we're already pretty good friends."  
Now shut up, Phil, he said to himself. Shut up and make a smooth excuse to go.

 

Maya hadn't intended to embarrass Phil, but now she knew for sure. Well, she had known before, but still, it was nice to see that she was right, even though she felt a little guilty for pushing the subject. After all, she had a feeling Dan would end up staying with Phil after all this chaos was over. It was just a feeling, but still- she hoped Phil would stick around.

 

"Alright, well, thanks for listening to me," Maya said. "We should probably get back to the others and say our goodbyes for the evening and stuff. You know, the last chance to think of anything else important to say for now."

 

"Yeah," Phil responded, relieved. "We ought to get back before it gets too late and stuff. I have Uni homework and studying to finish."

 

"Same," she laughed humorlessly. "I need to study for two upcoming AP tests. God, Sheila couldn't have had worse timing, could she have?"

 

Phil shrugged. "I didn't think there was a convenient time to ruin someone's life." 

 

"Ha! yeah, I guess not," she said. "But she could have at least waited until the end of the semester!" she added. 

 

When they were all gathered at the front door, Maya cleared her throat. "Okay, so we should all keep in close contact while we are separate. Does everyone have everyone else's phone number?" 

 

Phil handed Maya his phone, and Ryan handed Phil his phone. "Okay, I think that takes care of it," Ryan stated. 

 

"We should find a convenient time to meet later this week. I can't meet tomorrow and neither can Ryan. Dan-" she turned to him- "You had better get back to school- Oh!" she looked as if she had just remembered something. "Dan! here is your makeup work from your professors." She handed him a thick manilla folder with colored tabs sticking out of the papers. "Professor Agar wrote you a get well card and Annie sent you this." Maya went into the kitchen and came back with a little stuffed bear and a get well soon card.

 

"Wait- you mean Annie, as in the girl from my fifth grade class?"

 

Maya nodded. "Did you read your messages?"

 

Dan shook his head. 

 

"Well, you should have. Annie texted you. Seems to me that she fancies you, but I don't know for sure. She noticed you were gone and asked us what happened. I told her you were injured from Taekwondo."

 

Dan blinked. "Fancies me? Her? I thought she didn't like me. She always ignored me when I talked to her in class-"

 

"We really should be going," interrupted Phil. It's getting dark and I'm honestly not such a good driver in the dark." 

 

"Oh, of course," Maya said, shifting her attention to Phil. "One more thing I have for Dan-" she said, popping back into her room and returning with something that looked like a textbook, only typed out on computer paper and bound together in a binder. "Here- Dan, it's my notes for the upcoming AP Bio and Literature tests." Dan's eyes widened.

 

"Maya, what on earth-"

 

"Just take it and study it!" She insisted. "I made three copies and I have the entire thing on a hard drive, so I can just go over to the library and print another copy if I need it." 

 

"Well... thanks," Dan managed, hefting the binder. 

 

She nodded. "Okay, Dan, Phil- off you go! And Ryan-" she turned to him- "Text me when you get home and have looked up Tae Guk 7. Send it to me in clips, could you?" 

 

"Yeah, absolutely," he responded. 

 

They embraced and Maya closed the door on all three of her visitors, waving to them as the shuffled out. Oh, what a great deal they had just been through, with more to come, she thought, as she closed the door behind them, leaving her a house in silence. She went to put on music- she needed to clean up the house a bit before her mother came home.

 

Phil opened the car door for Dan and helped him into the passenger seat. He shoved the stuffed bear, cards, makeup papers, and the oversized binder Maya had given him in the back and started the car, backing out slowly.

 

Dan unlocked his phone. His eyes widened in surprise. He had some 20 new messages and missed calls. His mom had called him, but that was before the match. Ryan and Maya together had called him no less than seven times and master Tom had texted him. Even Annie had texted him, the girl who Dan was pretty sure held a permanent grudge against him. Why did she text him again? Oh yeah, Maya said she fancied him. Maybe he should call her and let her know that everything turned out alright. No, that would be such an awkward call, as he didn't even know her that well, and they would see each other in school tomorrow. He would just text her back.

 

Dan: Hey Annie, it's Dan. I remember you, haha sorry about that :) Yeah I've been in the hospital so that why i didn't reply. Tell the teacher I'll be there tomorrow. Thanks :) 

 

He hit send. If only his parents would call him, he would feel better about everything. Their silence was beginning to work at Dan. He checked to see if his dad had shared his location with him. He hadn't. Dan sighed and put his phone in his front pocket. His life had been a chaotic blur for the past two weeks and, so far, there was no sign of improvement. At least he wasn't in the hospital. He really hoped he didn't have to go back there again, as he was beginning to dislike all of the nurses' questions and the smell of latex, hospital plastic, and rubbing alcohol. The fake lemon scent of the toilet freshener was stuck in Dan's olfactory memory, and it made him slightly nauseous. 

 

Phil cleared his throat. "Well, how are you feeling? Dan? Do you need anything, you know, while we're about? I can pop by the Pharmacy; it's on the way back." 

 

"Uhhh- huh? Oh, no I don't need anything, thanks," he replied. "Although I would appreciate a glass of actual water if that's okay when we get back to your place." 

 

"I'm so-" he started, but Dan was laughing. Phil laughed also. "Really I should have thought about that!" He stopped at the red light. "So, how is school? I mean, how much have you missed? Is it too much?" 

 

"S'not that bad," he said, suppressing a yawn. "Maya just gave me a book 'cause the midterms are coming up. She actually thinks I'm going to study it all, though." 

 

"Wish I had a friend like that when I was in high school," Phil replied, turning onto the street to his apartment complex. "I never turned in my homework on time. About failed calculus because of that." 

 

"Pfff, I'm not taking calculus. I'm taking advanced algebra. I took precalculus as a freshman, and I don't even know why that is a class at all. I'm not the best at math." 

 

Dan stared out the window. He needed to take his mind off of recent events. The best way he knew how was always Tae Kwon Do. He remembered practice on Wednesday before he had gotten injured; it was sparring and forms night. 

 

Dan had been tired, but he remembered what he was working towards, and he endured the difficulty. Keumjang meant unbreakable. Black belts were like diamonds; too strong to be broken. The first black belt form was almost mesmerizing. He had seen Armania, Tom's daughter who came to practice with them sometimes, perform it. It was so different from sparring. Forms were slow, and so precise. You had to work on your technique and accuracy and think about the logistics of every move you made, and every technique executed. 

 

When you spar, you had to be quick, anticipatory, and respond to your opponent. A side kick would be pulled straight through from a fighting stance instead of swept to the side and fully rotated. You had to be like lightning on the attack and the defense as well. You needed to be able to hit your opponent twice in a row without blinking, to anticipate in order to block their next move and to meet it with a sufficient technique and remember to dodge the next. You had to be flexible and in the optimum position to keep your balance- beyond that, you just had to practice. You had to be light on your feet but powerful with your strikes, fast and agile but equally quick witted and reluctant to spend am excess of energy. Everything about sparring was being fast, clever, accurate, and strong with your hits. Forms demanded that you be deliberate and almost meditative in every full-force blow- but not sluggish. He wondered if Maya had copied any pages of the Tae Kwon Do forms and Techniques guide for him. Looking in the back of the thick pile of paper in the three ringed binder, he was not disappointed. 

 

Axe kick- squared hips in a front stance. Lift the leg into chamber and lift the leg over the target, pulling all weight of the leg straight down through the target.

 

There was a diagram of a man performing a kick. It was one of the most difficult kicks to do well. You had to kind of lift the leg with the energy in mind that your downward motion would contain. There was an aspect of over and through that really tore at the hip ligaments if not done correctly. He remembered coming home from one practice with a really sore right hip ligament.

 

Crescent kick- squared hips in front stance. Lift the leg into chamber and snap, arcing and hitting three target areas- shoulder, head, shoulder. Set down kicking leg.

 

Crescent was probably one of his favorites, even though it was far from the most practical kick, even for a well-versed black belt.

 

Side kick- Turn and chamber the kicking foot, snapping and hitting the target with the heel of the foot.

 

Dan leafed through the booklet. Side kick, front snap kick, front shuffle kick, side shuffle kick, spin kick, jump kick, hook kick, back kick, spin side kick, tornado kick. He had yet to learn that kick.

 

He flipped past the kicking techniques to the section on strikes, punches, and blocks.

 

Middle target punch- stepping into a traditional front stance, execute a middle target punch, starting from chamber position. Target area is solar plexis (chest area.)

 

Knifehand strike- target area is shoulder; stepping into a side stance (80/20) execute a strike. Snap the hand as you pull it from a chamber position.

 

Spearhand strike- target area soft tissue in the neck or solar plexis. Stepping into a traditional front stance, extend opposite arm outward at a right angle, palm facing down and the palm, forearm, and arm perpendicular to the floor. This will serve as a guide for the other hand, which moves straight through space until the arm is fully extended.

 

Tae Guk four used several spearhands; it was the first form that did. After Taeguk two forms were longer and more difficult.

 

He flipped through the first pages of the forms section. It introduced each form, giving its number and its ancient symbolism, and the ranking system from the Chung Do Kwon school.

 

Taeguk One: Tae Guk Il Jang. Ancient philosophy of heaven and light. (yellow)

 

Taeguk Two: Tae Guk Ee Jang. Ancient philosophy of joy. (orange)

 

Taeguk Three: Tae Guk Sam Jang. Ancient philosophy of fire and sun. (green)

 

Taeguk Four: Tae Guk Sa Jang. Ancient philosophy of thunder. (purple)

 

Taeguk Five: Tae Guk Oh Jang. Ancient philosophy of wind. (red)

 

Taeguk Six: Tae Guk Yuk Jang. Ancient philosophy of water. (brown)

 

Taeguk seven: Tae Guk Chil Jang. Ancient philosophy of the great mountain. (bodon)

 

Taeguk eight: Tae guk Pal Jang. Ancient philosophy of the earth. (provisional black belt)

 

He kept going through the pages of diagrams and detailed instructions and just as he began to flip through Tae Guk six, Phil pulled into the parking lot of his apartment complex.

 

"Alright, we're here," he announced, pulling the keys from the car and causing the engine to deflate.

 

When they got to the door of his room, Phil said, "Now, I know that Maya said we should room together, but-"

 

Dan nodded. "I understand. I could just sleep on the couch again; it's perfectly fine. She's a bit overboard sometimes-"

 

"No, actually, that's... not what I meant," Phil interrupted. "I was going to say, I have a change of linens in the closet. I want you to take my bed; it will be more comfortable for you." Dan looked startled. "You are my guest, after all. I actually have a hide-a-bed in the other room that I can drag over to the bedroom."

 

"I- well, thanks," he said awkwardly, "-but you really don't have to do tha-"

 

"No protesting!" he exclaimed with a smile. "You, sir, are my guest and I insist that you have a decent bed to sleep on after having to sleep in a hospital." he paused. "And also I thought you might be tired of the couch," he added with less of a suave demeanor.

 

Dan smiled at him; a somewhat lopsided smile that was more genuine than any he had given in quite some time. "Thanks," he said quietly, staring inadvertently.

 

Phil hesitated, and then smiled back. "I need to go get the sheets," he said, and walked over to his closet to dig through its contents.

 

Dan got settled into bed once he had brushed his teeth and called Maya quickly to assure her he was with Phil at his apartment and safe. She worried a lot, he thought. He supposed it was justified, though, at least somewhat after bearing witness to his classmate's recent actions. He wondered where Sheila was. According to Maya, she hadn't been to school in as much time as Dan had been gone.

 

Maya: She hasn't been at all since you’ve been gone. Not good

 

Dan: I wonder what she's planning

 

Maya: no idea, but whatever it is, apparently it was important enough for her to drop out of school

 

Maya: :/

 

Maya: I just hope she doesn't attack you like that again

 

Maya: if she does, Dan, HIT HER BACK

 

Dan: what do you mean hit her back? She dodges attacks with the speed of a rattlesnake

 

Maya: do whatever you have to to put her down and get away

 

Dan: you know shes like taller than me and a bit stronger as well

 

Maya: for heaven sakes, Dan, outsmart her

 

Dan: o m g I CANT

 

Maya: DO YOUR BEST use the techniques master Tom taught you

 

Dan: okay okay this is a theoretical fight anyways

 

Maya: doesn't mean it couldn't happen

 

Dan: Don't I have more important things to think about right now like MY PARENTS

 

Maya: Well, I'm working on it. I've been calling people and searching phonebooks all night. Tomorrow I go over and talk to the assistant director of the company your mother works for. She will know where she is

 

Dan: oh

 

Dan: thank you Maya. Seriously

 

Maya: Don't mention it

 

Maya: bro

 

Dan: :)  
Dan smiled at the nickname Maya had given him. Bro. He liked the sound of it. He had always wanted a sister, and Maya was probably the best person he knew. He just felt lucky to have her helping him, caring about him, tending to him with all of the devotion of a really good sister. It was a little weird, he thought, but hey, there were weirder things than adopting your best friend as your informal sister.

 

Dan: Maya?

 

Maya: Yes Dan?

 

Dan: Sis

 

Maya :) ❤️

 

Dan smiled to himself. He really did owe a lot to her. Wait... he hadn't mentioned the mysterious woman that gave him the salve. Maybe it didn't matter, so long as there were no adverse effects from the stuff, but so far his shoulder was less painful than it had been before and there seemed to be no ill effects whatsoever, rather, to the contrary- it seemed to be healing. He took the little tin out of his pocket and unwound the bandages and splint gingerly, and rubbed more of the stuff on his shoulder. He carefully re-applied the splint and set the tin on Phil's dresser.

 

Phil cleared his throat again. "Dan? We should probably sleep. It's 10:30 and you have school tomorrow, don't you?"

 

"Um," Dan hesitated. "Why does everyone keep saying that? Tomorrow is Saturday. I don't have school, but there is an optional practice. For Taekwondo."

 

"Oh! That's right! Well, we'll go to that then." Phil sat up a little from his hide-a-bed. "Oh, and Dan?"

 

"Yes?" he returned.

 

"Good night."

 

"Good night, Phil," Dan said. Phil tried to read the inflection in his tone, but he had never heard anything like it before. He couldn't tell if Dan was apathetic, happy, discontented, or just being plain courteous. In any case, he was sleeping, if not in the same bed, at least in the same room as Dan, and that made him feel better.

 

The lights flickered off, and Dan and Phil both drifted off to sleep, each hoping that nothing else catastrophic would occur during the night or the days to follow.

 

It stormed violently all night long, rain battering against the windows and lightening coming closer and closer until the apartment was shaken with a bolt that struck directly overhead. Dan sat bolt upright. "Bloody hell!" he swore, none the quieter for the benefit of his companion. As it were, Phil also had been awakened.

 

"You alright?"

 

another bolt of lightening struck perilously close.

 

"Aha well, for now, but I bloody well hope your building isn't struck!" Dan exclaimed, jumping at the explosively loud noise produced in tangent with a white flash.

 

Another bolt struck, and Dan was sure by the resounding crack that it had struck something large. "Phil!" he exclaimed. "I think it hit a tree!"

 

They both hastened to the window. Outside was nothing but darkness. "Let's try the the other one," he suggested, hurrying to look out the window facing the parking lot. Sure enough, the biggest tree in the lot, an old oak that had been there since before the parking lot and even the apartments was blazing, flame spreading up and down the length of its trunk and branches. 

 

BOOM! The windows rattled. 

 

another bolt flashed like white fire, splitting the heavens with its only slightly delayed rejoinder.

 

"We ought to call the fire department," said Dan, looking on the tree that was up in flames. He dialed 999. 

 

About a fifteen minutes later, sirens wailed. A fire truck came and quenched the poor oak, and the lightning continued to flash menacingly, but it was further away.

 

flash.

 

one. 

 

two. 

 

thre- BOOM.

 

It was 2:40, and both of the two were exhausted. 

 

"Sorry about that," he mumbled. "I didn't mean to yell."

 

"I felt like yelling," Phil stated. "Actually, more like hiding," he admitted. "I hate lightening when it's that close."

 

"Who doesn't? It's horrible," Dan said.

 

"Well, I guess we can go back to bed."

 

"yeah." 

 

Dan crawled back underneath the covers of Phil's bed and lay down and Phil went back to his hide-a-bed. Silence. 

 

"Dan?"

 

"Yeah?"

 

more silence. "You know, you're always welcome to stay with me."

 

Strange thing to say, he thought. Oh, right, the lightning. "Well, I guess you're welcome to call me when all of this is over if something ever happens. Y'know, to your apartment. I'm sure my parents would let you stay with us."

 

Pause. Phil's heart sank. When all of this is over. That's right; it wasn't real. Dan was here because he had broken his shoulder and had no one else to take care of him. Except for his motherly friend. He looked over at the darkness, where a mass of sheets covered Dan from his view.

 

"Well, I appreciate it," he said finally. 

 

"Any way I can repay you."

 

"You don't have to repay me!" Phil exclaimed. "Dan, uh,-" he broke off. "You know, I would be happy to have you visit me any time you'd like. Life isn't exactly eventful when you live alone. Everyone in high school thinks that the Uni students party all night every night and stuff, but it's not really true. Aside from my friends, I don't get that many guests."  
Friends? Phil, what does that make Dan? "I mean for studying. I go out with friends and stuff, but it's not like people stay over."

 

Pause. "Don't you- I mean, well, you don't have a girlfriend?" he asked.  
Why did I ask that.

 

"No, we broke up months ago." Phil was blushing, so he was glad that Dan couldn't see.

 

"Oh yeah, I vaguely remember that. Natasha, was that it?"

 

"Natalia," Phil corrected. 

 

"Oh. Sorry, for bringing her up, I mean."

 

"No, it's fine. We just never really worked out."

 

"Oh." Dan said again, rolling over onto his back. "Well, I guess we might both have better luck next time, right?" He gave a tired, nervous chuckle. "My first crush wasn't exactly sugar and spice. She is more like barbed wire and arsenic."

 

Phil laughed forcedly. "Yeah, guess so," he said. 

 

Dan yawned. "I guess good night again," he said. 

 

"Good night, Dan," Phil said softly, heaving a sigh into his pillow. He was wide awake, and it was three AM.

 

As Phil pretended to drift off to sleep, Dan watched him. Why was he alone? Shouldn't he be living in a yucky dorm or something and partying with his neighbors and flirting with hot girls? The idea made his head spin. Alcohol, parties, all of the time, throwing up in the nearest trash can, making out with girls indiscriminately. At least, that was the college guy stereotype. Phil wasn't the partying type, Dan supposed. After all, he was a senior. He could live off-campus and just drive in. Dan always thought that freedom must feel good, but it just seemed like it made Phil unhappy. Dan thought about it for a moment. He always thought that it would be the most liberating thing to be separated from his parents, but now that they were gone, he missed them. He would have to make decisions- hard decisions- alone. College applications loomed over his head, and he knew he had to apply for more schools. His parents had helped him fill out one application, and Maya had given him some advice and even helped him in correcting the essay for another which he hadn't sent in yet. Even so, Dan wasn't sure he wanted to go to the universities he applied to. What would it be like if he had to live like Phil, away from his family, and even away from people his age? He felt a lump forming in his throat. Phil would be all alone. Dan would be all alone. He didn't even know what he was doing with his life, and he would have to figure it out by himself. Why was life even like this? It didn't seem right; it didn't seem fair. No one had told him that teachers and parents and friends wouldn't always be there. He never thought he would have to leave Maya and Ryan and travel to another city, possibly another country without support or any sort of real warning. It didn't even seem real to him. And now- he wouldn't even see Phil again in all probability. No one Dan liked ever seemed to stay in his life for longer than a moment. When he met Ryan was the first time he ever had a real friend, let alone a best friend. Maya was the second best thing that had happened to him that year, and now the best thing that had happened to him that he could remember was asleep in the same room as him, but he wouldn't be for long. Maya, Ryan, Phil and him would figure everything out and he would be home again for just half of a year and a summer, and then he would be gone- he would live somewhere else, go to a different school, and take different classes. Either that, or they would never figure out what Sheila was doing, and Dan would lose his parents and slowly his mind along with them. But, if that happened, maybe he could stay with Phil. That would make things... different. If only he could have both, he thought to himself, and then inwardly berated himself for being selfish. Dan's eyelids began to droop. He imagined wandering around in hospitals, with tape stuck to his arm and talking to growlithes that told him about the process of photosynthesis. He found himself walking up the side of the wall, listening to the monotony of the creature's speech.

 

"...Such childish fantasies!" said the growlithe. "Any more, there is no place for the factory workers. The reason is the forest of tears is being re-invigorated with injections of polyglucose. No one even understands how to drive photosynthesis any longer around here. The raadars are disappearing faster than I can roar." 

 

he turned his bushy mane towards Dan somberly. "I really can't believe some of the stuff they come up with," he rambled on. "You know, you're one of them! Such shallow thoughts should put such a good young mind to shame! Have you any respect for the dignity of the chromatose flatlands or the forest of tears at all? No? I thought not..."

 

It rambled on, and his deep voice resounded as Dan's consciousness slipped away. Within another ten minutes, Dan was fast asleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fixed the formatting :). I also corrected some minor errors. Please, let me know if there are any more errors, and constructive criticism is always highly appreciated.  
> Have a great one.  
> Nangerdama
> 
> Edit: I'm working hard on chapter 13 everyone! It's been a while since I started this fic so I've had to review everything and do a lot of work with the plot and character development to come. I've got several documents devoted to the plot lines, the characters themselves, interactions etc., so it's a work in progress. 
> 
> Thank you so much to everyone who has taken time to read this and comment, bookmark, and leave kudos thus far. It means the world to me.


End file.
